A/60/PV.40 General Assembly

Before turning to today’s items, I would like to pay tribute to all those affected by the abhorrent terrorist attacks on two marketplaces and a bus in New Delhi, India, on Saturday, 29 October. On behalf of the General Assembly, I offer our deepest sympathy to the people and the Government of India and to the families and friends of those killed or injured. I would also like to extend our sympathy to the victims of other recent terrorist attacks wherever they have been committed. I now call on the representative of India.

I do not wish to take up the time of the General Assembly, but would just like to say a few words to express our heartfelt appreciation for the President’s very kind words of sympathy. This attack has drawn universal condemnation, including from the Secretary-General. The Prime Minister has expressed our determination to continue the struggle against terrorism. We do not regard this attack as an attack on either the Government or the institutions of the State. It is an attack on ordinary working people, for whom the festival of light is a way for families and civil society to get together. The ordinary working people of India will continue to maintain that in which they have been schooled through millennia, that is, tolerance and harmony among all faiths; at the same time, they will also maintain their unbreakable determination to resist. As the Assembly is aware, about 60 persons have lost their lives and several hundred others have been injured. Investigations are continuing. Many clues have been unearthed and some arrests have been made. I am sure that the authorities will eventually be able to lay bare who perpetrated these attacks and the organizations that were involved. On behalf of the people of India and those affected, I once again thank the President very much for his very kind words of sympathy.

I am sure that what the representative of India has said underscores the need to continue and intensify our work to conclude the negotiations on a comprehensive convention on terrorism and then, later on during this session of the General Assembly, discuss a strategy on counter- terrorism.

In the first paragraph of its report, the General Committee recommends to the General Assembly that the item entitled “Granting of observer status in the General Assembly to the Ibero- American Conference” be included in the agenda of the current session under heading I, entitled “Organizational, administrative and other matters”. May I take it that the General Assembly decides to include that item on the agenda of the current session under heading I?

The General Committee further recommends that the item be allocated to the Sixth Committee. May I take it that the General Assembly decides to allocate that item to the Sixth Committee?

I should like to inform Members that the item entitled “Granting of observer status in the General Assembly to the Ibero-American Conference” becomes item 159 on the agenda of the current session. The Chairman of the Sixth Committee will be informed of the decision just taken by the General Assembly. In the second paragraph of the same report, the General Committee decided to recommend to the General Assembly that the item entitled “Question of the Comorian island of Mayotte” be deferred to the sixty-second session of the General Assembly and that it be included in the provisional agenda of that session. May I take it that the Assembly approves that recommendation?

It gives me great pleasure this morning to extend a warm welcome to Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Nobel laureate. On behalf of the General Assembly, I extend our sincere and heartfelt congratulations to him, and through him to the International Atomic Energy Agency, on being awarded the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts, in the words of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, “to prevent nuclear energy from being used for military purposes and to ensure that nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is used in the safest possible way”. It is indeed well-deserved recognition of his work at a crucial time for the future of disarmament, non- proliferation and the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Over the years since its foundation, in 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency and its leadership have shown that, through global cooperation, we can help build a safer world. The Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the IAEA and its Director General is thus a message of encouragement for all of us in the United Nations family. It strengthens us in our belief that multilateralism is necessary in dealing with global threats and challenges, be they poverty, global disease outbreaks, natural disasters, climate change, terrorism or the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The International Atomic Energy Agency was established to promote the peaceful applications of atomic energy for the benefit of humanity while simultaneously guarding against the spread of its use for military purposes. Adapting to new circumstances and needs over time, that mandate has evolved into promoting safeguards and verification as well as safety and security and peaceful applications of nuclear science and technology. Since 2001 it has also emphasized protection against nuclear terrorism and attacks on nuclear facilities. In a world of much insecurity and mistrust, the International Atomic Energy Agency in recent years has been at the forefront of international efforts to adapt the nuclear-non-proliferation regime to the new challenges of preventing a nuclear black market from emerging and of tackling the proliferation risks related to the increasing demand for nuclear technology, including in particular the nuclear fuel cycle. The work of the Agency in those fields too is an important contribution to making the world more safe and more secure for all. With that introduction, I am honoured to invite Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General of the IAEA, to the podium to introduce the Agency’s annual report.

I am grateful to you, Mr. President, for your kind words about the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and me. As you rightly stated, the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the Agency highlights the serious challenges we face in curbing the proliferation of nuclear weapons, protecting ourselves against nuclear terrorism and moving forward with our commitment to creating a world free from nuclear weapons. I view the Prize as recognition of the IAEA’s ceaseless efforts to ensure that nuclear energy is used exclusively for peaceful purposes and with a high level of safety and security. I also view it as a timely affirmation of the value and importance of multilateral approaches to addressing most, if not all, of the challenges we face in creating a global security system that is inclusive, equitable and effective. Each year the delivery of the IAEA’s annual report to the General Assembly is a time for reflection, but today perhaps more than usual. The year 2005 marks 100 years since Albert Einstein’s ground- breaking work began to unlock the secrets of the atom. It is the sixtieth anniversary of the first, and hopefully only, uses of nuclear weapons, at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And last year marked half a century since a nuclear power plant first supplied energy to the electricity grid in what is now the Russian Federation. As I begin a new term of office at the Agency, this is also a time for me to review our progress and renew our vision. Today I would like to highlight developments related to each part of the Agency’s mission — namely, technology, safety and verification — and then to outline a few objectives for the future. Over the past few years, we have witnessed considerable change in attitudes towards nuclear energy. Fast-growing global energy demands, an increased emphasis on the security of energy supplies and the risk of climate change are driving a renewed consideration of nuclear power. Near-term nuclear growth remains centred in Asia and Eastern Europe, which together account for 22 of the 24 units now under construction. The Russian Federation intends to double its nuclear generating capacity by 2020. China plans a nearly six-fold expansion in capacity by the same date. And India anticipates a ten-fold increase by 2022. Elsewhere, plans remain more modest, but it is clear that nuclear energy is re-emerging in a way that few would have predicted just a few years ago. For a number of years, I have advocated the consideration of multilateral approaches to the nuclear fuel cycle, so as to address challenges posed by proliferation-sensitive operations such as those related to uranium enrichment and plutonium separation. Last year I informed the Assembly of my establishment of a group of senior experts to explore options for multilateral control of fuel-cycle facilities. Their work has helped to shape an understanding of how such controls might be put in place. Much attention is already being given to the first step, that is, to provide the assurance of supply of nuclear fuel and technology at competitive market prices. By doing so we would remove the incentive for countries to develop indigenous fuel-cycle capabilities. Moreover, given the rising expectation for the expanded use of nuclear power in many countries, those multilateral approaches could, in my view, offer additional advantages in terms of safety, security and economics. Cancer is a major health concern, and the number of cancer cases is rising — most rapidly in developing countries. Access to life-saving radiotherapy is limited or non-existent in many areas. By way of comparison, consider that in Austria, where the Agency is headquartered, we have approximately one radiotherapy machine for every 270,000 people; whereas for most African countries the ratio is about one machine for every 10 million people, and some countries have no such facilities at all. The Agency’s Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy is working to increase our capacity to assist developing Member States by mobilizing more resources to address personnel, infrastructure, technology and training needs. Addressing the challenge of cancer is an intrinsically multidisciplinary effort. We are, therefore, seeking to build partnerships with key organizations, such as the World Health Organization, in order to achieve a coordinated and holistic approach. The use of isotopes and radiation in food and agricultural research and development continues to yield rich results. To give just one example, in Peru harsh local environments, characterized by depleted saline soils and high altitudes, have traditionally caused many crops to fail. Through the use of radiation mutation to create new varieties of barley and rice, and the active involvement of Peruvian farmers in the breeding process, agricultural productivity and income have increased. Nuclear techniques are also increasingly being used in environmental applications. The Agency’s Marine Environment Laboratory in Monaco has become a world leader in the use of radionuclides to track ocean currents, as well as in using isotopes to track carbon dioxide absorption in the ocean’s surface, an important technique in the study of climate change. This year the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) funded the Agency’s coordination of an extensive pollution survey of marine sediments from 35 shipwrecks sunk in Iraq’s waterways. The results will help to ensure that salvage operations can be conducted with minimal risk to humans and the marine environment. Recent years have also witnessed considerable evolution in nuclear safety and security. When I addressed this body just four years ago, I urged greater participation in nuclear-related international conventions, promoted the benefits of all countries using IAEA safety standards and called for the creation of a Chernobyl forum to set the record straight on the effects of the 1986 accident and improve the coordination of remediation efforts. In the week following the 11 September terrorist attacks in the United States of America, the Agency’s General Conference issued a resolution calling for a sweeping review of the Agency’s nuclear security programme. Since that time, we have made progress on multiple fronts. The Convention on Nuclear Safety has evolved into a forum for more substantive discussion on safety issues, incorporating feedback and lessons learned from the results of IAEA peer reviews. I am also pleased to report that IAEA safety standards are receiving increasingly broad acceptance as the global reference for protecting people and the environment against nuclear accidents and harmful radiation exposure. The strong relationship between the Agency’s operational safety standards and its safety review services has been an important element in evaluating and enhancing the effectiveness of the standards. I would therefore urge all countries to take full advantage of those services. I am also pleased to note that, just last month, a report on Chernobyl’s legacy was issued. It was based on the extensive work of the Chernobyl Forum, which has provided the best scientific analyses of the health, environmental and social impacts of the 1986 accident. That work reflected the consensus achieved among the relevant United Nations agencies and programmes and the Governments of Belarus, the Russian Federation and Ukraine. The organizations involved are also discussing cooperation on new initiatives to assist local populations with safe food production and improved health care and in regaining control over their own livelihoods. The International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, which was adopted by the General Assembly in April, requires States parties to criminalize the unlawful possession and use of radioactive material and the unlawful use or damage of nuclear facilities. Security Council resolution 1540 (2004), which was adopted last year, calls on all countries to develop and maintain effective physical protection and border controls and to use law enforcement efforts to detect and combat illicit trafficking. And in July, parties to the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material agreed on major changes that would make it legally binding for countries to protect nuclear facilities and material in peaceful domestic use, in storage and in transport. I urge all States to fully and promptly implement the provisions of those conventions and resolution 1540 (2004). The Agency stands ready to offer assistance to all States in that regard by providing legal and technical advice, training and peer reviews. Few areas of the Agency’s activities have undergone as much major expansion in so short a period as has our nuclear security programme over the past four years. The events of 11 September 2001 were followed rapidly by the development of a comprehensive nuclear security plan. A Nuclear Security Fund was established, to which our member States immediately and generously began to contribute. In the intervening four years, the Agency has conducted more than 100 nuclear-security field missions. Approximately 1,500 individuals from all regions have received IAEA training in measures related to preventing nuclear and radiological terrorism. The results are tangible: strengthened physical protection at nuclear facilities; recovery and enhanced security for hundreds of high-intensity radioactive sources; increased security awareness among responsible national officials; better cooperation among international law enforcement organizations; enhanced detection capabilities at border crossings and improved preparedness to respond to incidents. In the area of nuclear verification, as with other areas of Agency activity, times have changed in recent years. We have clearly made progress on some fronts, but perhaps regressed on others. The Agency’s resumption of inspections in Iraq in 2002, the subsequent termination of inspections in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, our more recent investigation of clandestine nuclear programmes in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and the Islamic Republic of Iran, the discovery of illicit nuclear procurement networks, and the lack of agreement at the 2005 Review Conference of the States Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) have put the spotlight on an unprecedented array of challenges to the non-proliferation and arms control regime. The Agency’s verification system has shown great resourcefulness and resiliency in dealing with many of those challenges. We have rapidly initiated intensive verification efforts in a number of countries and investigated the illicit procurement network. We have strengthened the verification system through enhanced use of satellite imagery, environmental sampling and a variety of new technologies. As part of strengthening the safeguards system, we have begun applying the so-called integrated safeguards — a more effective approach that combines traditional safeguards with more advanced methods of analysis and enhanced access under the Additional Protocol. We are now applying integrated safeguards in multiple countries, including Japan and Canada, the two largest nuclear programmes under safeguards. We have also adjusted our policy on small quantities protocols to ensure more effective verification in all countries with comprehensive safeguards agreements, and we have established a Committee on Safeguards to examine additional ways and means to strengthen the system. In dealing with all those verification challenges, we have maintained our objectivity and independence, and thereby strengthened our credibility. In short, the past few years have continued to underscore the central importance of the Agency’s role in combating proliferation. The IAEA’s technical cooperation programme continues to be a principal mechanism for implementing our basic mission — “Atoms for Peace” — supporting activities related to a host of nuclear technology applications, as well as safety, security and safeguards activities. We have greatly increased the effectiveness of the Technical Cooperation Programme in recent years by shifting from a technology-driven to a needs-driven approach focused on achieving tangible socio-economic benefits in member States. The current technical cooperation strategy highlights three elements essential for successful delivery of the Programme: strong Government commitment, high quality of technical cooperation projects, and adequate funding. When I began my second term of office in 2001, I called for increased public outreach to explain the IAEA’s contributions in all areas of our work. Little did I realize at that time the degree of public exposure we were to receive. In the four intervening years, the Agency’s public image has been transformed, in large part due to emergent non-proliferation issues, but also due to our own successful efforts to raise public awareness of the important work of the Agency. We have substantially stepped up our Internet presence, we have revitalized our public seminar programme, and we have conducted a series of media campaigns on important topics, including nuclear security, radiotherapy, nuclear power and — earlier this month — the Chernobyl Forum report. The results of those efforts have been significant. The IAEA has moved in the public domain from being a relatively unknown agency to a trusted institution that plays a crucial role in both security and development. This rapid overview summarizes the many changes that have occurred in nearly every area of our activities in recent years. It also shows the ability of the IAEA to anticipate and respond to change. As we look to the future, we will continue to seek to meet Member States’ needs and priorities through both our technical cooperation and regular budget programmes. I would like here to outline some key points for the next few years. In the area of nuclear power, I would hope that we would focus more explicitly on the need of energy for development. I was personally reminded of the current global energy imbalance on a recent trip to Nigeria, where per capita electricity consumption is only about 70 kilowatt-hours per year. That contrasts sharply with, for example, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average of 8,000 kilowatt-hours per year. That energy shortage in developing countries is a basic impediment to development. The IAEA’s energy assessment services build a State’s capability for energy analysis and energy planning, taking into account the country’s economic, environmental and social development needs. Those services treat all energy supply options equally. They are in increasingly high demand, and we hope to expand our capacity to offer them. The future of nuclear power in the decades to come will, in my view, be a function of technological innovation — the development of new reactor and fuel- cycle technologies — to address nuclear safety, proliferation, waste generation and economic considerations. Many countries are collaborating on innovative nuclear research and development for the longer term. The IAEA International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles works to ensure that the future needs of all countries, including developing countries, are considered when innovative nuclear systems are evaluated. A key feature of modern science is its synergy — the way, for example, in which advances in fields such as nanotechnology, bioengineering and information technology build on each other to achieve greater progress. With that in mind, we will continue to seek out new applications in which nuclear technology can offer tangible benefits to society in the medical, agricultural, environmental and other fields. To ensure that nuclear applications have the maximum positive impact, the IAEA will endeavour to forge more strategic partnerships with other United Nations system organizations, international financial institutions, regional organizations and, above all, member States. The IAEA will also continue to promote a global nuclear safety regime. That will include better harmonization of national regulatory approaches to ensure at all times high-quality, independent oversight for nuclear activities. It would also include efforts to improve our performance in fixing the so-called weak links in the nuclear safety chain. Although significant efforts have been made over the past two decades to upgrade reactor safety features, with excellent results, facilities still exist at which nuclear safety assistance must be made a priority. As I mentioned earlier, the Agency’s nuclear security assistance efforts to date have been focused, by necessity, on helping States identify and address vulnerabilities, upgrading physical protection, and securing high-priority radioactive sources. But as we continue to build a global nuclear security framework, it is important that we develop a clearer overall picture of remaining security vulnerabilities. For example, we need to improve our understanding of the patterns that characterize illicit trafficking activities in order for Member States to be provided with the information needed to effectively combat such activities. In the area of nuclear verification, priorities for the coming years include universalizing the Additional Protocol so that its expanded rights of access apply equally in all States with comprehensive safeguards agreements; normalizing safeguards in Iraq; bringing the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea back to the NPT regime; providing the required assurances about Iran’s nuclear programme; and continuing to investigate the nature and extent of the illicit procurement network. Clearly, too, I would hope, in the next year or so, to make some progress with regard to establishing better control over the sensitive parts of the fuel cycle, namely, enrichment and reprocessing activities. I would also urge the commencement of negotiations at the Conference on Disarmament on a treaty to ban the production of material for nuclear weapons — the so-called fissile material cut-off treaty. It is essential, in my view, that we take steps to eliminate both access to and production of material for nuclear weapons. Clearly, much remains to be done. The lack of any agreement at the NPT Review Conference this past May, as I just mentioned, was extremely disappointing, given the urgent and serious challenges we face. In the same vein, it was also disturbing that no agreement was reached on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament at the world summit last month. The current challenges to international peace and security, including those related to nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear arms control, cannot be wished away. It is urgent and indispensable that we continue to build a global security system that is equitable, inclusive and effective. In conclusion, I should like to say that the staff and management of the IAEA continue to do their utmost to make the Agency effective and efficient in carrying out its mission, but in all its areas of activity, the IAEA also remains dependent on the General Assembly’s commitment and partnership. I look forward to continuing that partnership in the years to come. Let me conclude by expressing, as usual, my sincere appreciation to the Government of Austria, which continues to be a most gracious host to the IAEA.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Mr. ElBaradei and his organization on being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2005. I call on the representative of Japan to introduce draft resolution A/60/L.13.

We have just heard the introductory statement on the report of the activities of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for 2004 by Director General Mohamed ElBaradei. The report underlines the significant contribution being made by the Agency to international peace and stability by promoting the peaceful use of nuclear energy and maintaining and strengthening the nuclear non-proliferation regime through safeguards implementation. As Chairman of the Board of Governors of the IAEA, I have the honour to introduce the draft resolution, contained in document A/60/L.13, on the report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The draft resolution is sponsored by Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, India, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of Moldova, Romania, the Russian Federation, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Timor- Leste, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. It derives from a requirement pursuant to the Agency’s statute and the 1957 Agreement governing the relationship between the Agency and the United Nations. The draft resolution recognizes the work of the Agency and is the means by which the General Assembly takes note of the statement of the Director General and the annual report, as well as the resolutions and decisions adopted by the General Conference. The draft resolution, which I have the honour of introducing today, reflects a broad agreement among the IAEA’s member States and is the result of consultations in Vienna as well as here in New York. In the past two years, the Agency has adopted a streamlined approach in producing a short and simple draft resolution. The draft resolution before the Assembly lists the relevant resolutions and decisions adopted by the General Conference at its forty-ninth regular session, held in Vienna from 26 to 30 September 2005. That said, let me draw members’ attention to the fact that this year’s draft resolution differs from the resolutions of the past two years in referring to the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the IAEA and Mr. ElBaradei, and welcomes the reappointment of Mr. ElBaradei to a third four-year term. The award will provide a great boost to the Agency’s activities in 2005 and beyond. I find it very timely that, in remembering the use of atomic bombs 60 years ago in August 1945, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has this year highlighted the importance of nuclear non-proliferation. The draft resolution gives an account of activities in areas of specific interest with the intention of focusing the attention of the Assembly on the most significant activities of the Agency. It is my sincere hope that the present draft resolution will be adopted by consensus.

Allow me at the outset to join you, Sir, in expressing our sympathy and solidarity with India in the face of yesterday’s heinous terrorist attacks there. On behalf of the members of the League of Arab States, I extend our sincere appreciation to Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei for his important introduction today of the report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on its activities this year. Before turning to the objective aspects of the report, I wish first to reaffirm the pride we all feel as Members of the United Nations and, in particular as Arab States, in the awarding to the IAEA and Director General ElBaradei of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize. We consider it to be a two-fold recognition of the role of the IAEA and of the remarkable efforts of Mr. ElBaradei to enhance the Agency’s activities, contributing to the unanimous decision of its members to reappoint him to his important post. We wish him and the Agency every success in his new term of office. The Arab States appreciate the Agency’s valuable role in strengthening international peace and security through its activities in the field of nuclear non- proliferation. We also recognize the Agency’s important contribution to the achievement of international priorities in the field of sustainable development through its activities and achievements in the transfer of nuclear technology, expertise, technical cooperation, verification and nuclear safety. Technical cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy is one of the Agency’s principal activities, given its direct contribution to the development goals of peoples, especially those in developing countries. The Arab States appreciate the Agency’s work in developing and modernizing its technical cooperation strategy to serve the development priorities of its members and in identifying the vital and concrete short- and medium- term contributions that nuclear technology can make. We reaffirm that funding for the Agency’s work in technical cooperation and technology transfer must be increased, especially since those activities are main pillars of its work, as laid down in its statute. In that regard, the Arab States would like to reaffirm their support for, and encouragement of, the IAEA’s strategy to focus on projects that provide tangible economic returns. We would also like to welcome the practical steps taken by the Agency towards the early holding of consultations with Member States with regard to the details of the projects that countries would like to propose as well as to the preparation of a framework of action for every State that incorporates projects for future cooperation in the service of national sustainable development programmes. With regard to verification and safeguards, the IAEA no doubt has a primary role to play in completing the conceptual framework for integrated safeguards. However, the effectiveness of that framework will not be achieved without the universality of its components, at the forefront of which is the universality of comprehensive safeguards. Moreover, the ongoing shortcomings in achieving the universality of the Agency’s safeguards will jeopardize our intensive efforts towards eliminating the dangers of nuclear proliferation. The Agency must therefore seek to ensure the universal character of comprehensive safeguards as the main pillar of the nuclear non- proliferation regime. It must also work to bring every country, without exception, under the safeguards regime. For their part, the Arab States have undertaken many initiatives at the regional and international levels to address the dangers resulting from nuclear proliferation. Since 1974, Arab countries have called for the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone in the Middle East. That call has been the subject of an annual resolution that has been adopted by consensus by the General Assembly since 1980. In addition, through the IAEA, Arab countries continue to call for the implementation of the IAEA’s comprehensive safeguards regime at all nuclear installations in the Middle East without exception. Despite all those initiatives to guarantee security and stability in the region, it is regrettable that Israel has not demonstrated any serious engagement with regard to addressing the issue of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East. It continues to refuse to agree to place all its nuclear facilities under the IAEA’s comprehensive safeguards regime. That has had a negative impact on all efforts aimed at dealing with the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons in general, and in the Middle East in particular. The situation creates a dual responsibility for the international community, namely, to eliminate all the dangers posed to international peace and security by nuclear proliferation and to seek to implement the Agency’s nuclear safeguards in the Middle East. In that regard, Arab States call for support for the IAEA Director General’s fulfilment of the mandate given to him by the Agency’s General Conference to implement the safeguards regime in the Middle East. Forfeiting the nuclear option, declaring the region a zone free of all weapons of mass destruction and placing all the region’s nuclear installations under full- scope IAEA safeguards constitute the first steps towards the building of confidence and achieving comprehensive peace in our region. This is all the more true given that activities not subject to the Agency’s safeguards pose a continuous threat of environmental disasters due either to lax safety procedures or the careless disposal of nuclear wastes, as has been described by numerous reports of United Nations and other international bodies. With regard to nuclear security, there is no doubt as to the urgent need to support and strengthen the activities and programmes of the Agency aimed at protecting nuclear materials and installations and other radioactive materials from the threat of nuclear terrorism. There is also a need for the Agency to take advantage of the nuclear terrorism agreement that has been signed by over 100 States to date, in order to bring under control those nuclear materials currently under no international supervision or to monitor and to avert the risk of their falling into the hands of terrorists. Given the foregoing, we would like to reaffirm our position with regard to the production of fissile materials, which is based on the need to place all nuclear materials, including nuclear stocks, under international supervision. We also emphasize the need to conclude an international agreement on this matter as soon as possible. In conclusion, I would like to express the appreciation of Arab States for the intensive and effective efforts made at Vienna under the leadership of Japan to prepare the draft resolution that will be introduced to the Assembly today. I would also like to reaffirm the continued support of Arab States for the work of the IAEA to strengthen its ability to address future challenges and to reiterate our appreciation and congratulations to the Agency and its Director General for their remarkable achievements in maintaining human security. Those efforts have been crowned with success by the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize, which they have earned and well deserve.

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union (EU) and the countries that have aligned themselves with this statement: Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey, Croatia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. Allow me, first of all, on behalf of the European Union, to congratulate the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, its Director General, on their well-deserved receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize. That is welcome recognition for the work of the Agency over many years. We would also like to thank Mr. ElBaradei for his statement on the report of the IAEA’s activities in 2004. The EU commends the secretariat of the IAEA and its Director General for the excellent work done by the Agency and for the importance of the results achieved last year. The EU member States welcome the outcome of the IAEA’s forty-ninth General Conference, which was held in Vienna from 26 to 30 September 2005, and the resolutions and decisions that were adopted at that Conference. I should perhaps just underline that the EU’s member States are all sponsors of the draft resolution (A/60/L.13) on the report of the IAEA, and that they fully support the report’s content. The draft resolution reflects broad agreement among the IAEA’s member States and is the result of consultations in Vienna. In that regard, we commend the efforts of the Chairman of the IAEA Board of Governors and hope that the present draft resolution will be adopted by consensus. Allow me to briefly touch upon a few elements of the role of the IAEA within the global nuclear non- proliferation regime and its contributions to it, as illustrated by the report submitted to the Assembly under this agenda item. The EU is fully committed to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and to the three mutually reinforcing pillars on which it is based. On 25 April this year, the EU updated its common position. Our commitment has only been reinforced by the disappointing Review Conference and the inability to reach consensus, at the world summit, on language on non-proliferation and disarmament. These shortfalls in international political will were disheartening to the EU, which made clear throughout the Conference its strong support for a strengthened nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament regime. The EU considers a nuclear non-proliferation regime of universal character, supported by a strong system of international safeguards, to be an essential prerequisite for collective security. Challenges to the Treaty and to the non-proliferation regime have in recent years underscored the necessity of full compliance and the need to work actively towards universal accession to the NPT. In that regard, the EU will continue its efforts to maintain the authority and integrity of the Treaty and calls on those States not yet parties to the NPT to join the treaty as non-nuclear- weapon States. The international safeguards system of the IAEA is an essential part of this global nuclear non- proliferation regime. These technical instruments provide necessary support for the political goal of sustaining an environment in which there can be peaceful use of nuclear energy without the diversion of nuclear material to nuclear- weapon programmes. In that context, the EU recognizes the continued need for a properly funded safeguards system that is both effective and cost-efficient and therefore credible, robust and complied with. The universal adoption and implementation of comprehensive safeguards agreements, and of Additional Protocols to them, is a prerequisite to an effective and credible safeguards system. In particular, the measures contained in the Additional Protocol are crucial to strengthening the IAEA’s ability to detect possible undeclared nuclear material and activities and provide assurance about the absence of such activities. The EU therefore continues to support universalization of the Additional Protocol and urges those that have not yet completed comprehensive safeguards agreements with Additional Protocols to do so as a matter of urgency. The EU considers that comprehensive safeguards agreements, together with Additional Protocols, constitute the current IAEA verification standard. The NPT confers a set of interrelated and mutually reinforcing obligations and rights on States parties to it. Full compliance with the Treaty and the obligations that derive from it is of fundamental importance. Therefore, the EU reiterates the specific calls by the IAEA for compliance. The challenges to compliance with the safeguards agreements must be addressed in a manner that upholds the integrity of the Treaty and the authority of the IAEA safeguards system, including through referral by the IAEA to the Security Council, as appropriate. The EU attaches the utmost importance to a high level of nuclear safety worldwide. Although safety is a national responsibility, international cooperation on this issue is indispensable. Nuclear safety is a permanent concern of the international community, and its continuous improvement should be the aim of all IAEA member States. The EU commends the Director General and the IAEA secretariat for having continued to help the member States during the past year to establish and maintain a stringent nuclear-security framework for nuclear installations and materials, and it welcomes the recent amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material. The EU urges States parties to ratify the amended Convention at the earliest opportunity. In addition, we call upon all States that have not yet done so to adhere to the Convention and its amendment, and, until such time as the amendment has entered into force, for all States to act in accordance with the object and purpose of the amendment. Finally, the fight against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction deserves a specific mention, as it represents a challenge of paramount importance to the international community. The EU member States strongly support all appropriate measures aimed at preventing terrorists from acquiring nuclear weapons. While the primary responsibility for the necessary nuclear security rests with Member States, the IAEA clearly has an essential role to play in preventing and combating nuclear terrorism. In that respect, we look forward to cooperation between the IAEA and the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1540 (2004). We welcome, too, the work that the Agency is engaged in with member States to address the issue of illicit nuclear trade. To conclude, we all live in an increasingly interdependent world in which we have to ensure our own and one another’s security and safety. At the same time, all of us are under an obligation to continue to ensure appropriate access to the benefits of nuclear knowledge, technology, equipment and materials, as provided for under article IV of the NPT. The IAEA has a central and indispensable role in that arrangement. We are pleased to note the Agency’s decision that the monetary award accompanying the Nobel Peace Prize will be used for funding the needs of developing countries in the peaceful application of nuclear energy. The EU reiterates its full support for the IAEA and is pleased to co-sponsor the draft resolution on the report of the International Atomic Energy Agency that is before the Assembly.

I have the honour to take the floor on behalf of the MERCOSUR member States, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, and its associated States, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela, to reiterate our full, active and ongoing commitment to the objectives of the international community in the areas of non-proliferation, nuclear disarmament and the promotion of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, with a guaranteed right for all States to engage in the research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. In that regard, we would like to underline the fact that the peaceful development of nuclear energy requires the establishment of an unequivocal environment of mutual trust that can be built only on the basis of fully transparent activities. We believe that it is mandatory for every responsible member of the international community to continue resolutely to make progress towards finding a solution to the problems posed by proliferation in order to ensure safe access for all peoples to the benefits that nuclear energy offers. Therefore, it is important to highlight the efforts of the Agency and of MERCOSUR and its associated States to establish a strong and effective verification mechanism whose implementation should be rational, not automatic. In that respect, the Agency should be urged to improve the effectiveness of safeguards implementation with a view to achieving, inter alia, a framework of integrated safeguards. The world is now experiencing a critical and very important phase with regard to the shared objectives that inspire the spirit of the Agency. MERCOSUR and its associated States share that spirit and believe in the free right of every country to responsibly develop the peaceful uses of nuclear energy at every stage and in fulfilment of international commitments. We therefore welcome the new members of the Agency and hope that they can contribute to the search for consensus, which will make it possible to increase transparency, confidence and legitimacy with regard to the decisions taken in that forum. We are convinced that, in the near future, nuclear energy will have a fundamental role, not only in clean energy production but also in human health, agriculture, industry, food preservation, water desalination and other peaceful applications. Proof of that can be seen in the significant resources that the Agency has devoted to those areas, as reflected in the resolutions adopted at the most recent General Conference and in the policies implemented by many countries at the domestic level. Special mention should be made of the Common System for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials implemented by the Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials, which continues to establish parameters for cooperation between the Argentine Republic and the Federative Republic of Brazil. We are promoting the progressive strengthening of cooperation between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Brazilian- Argentine Agency to ensure effective and more efficient implementation of the safeguards of the Quadripartite Agreement. Finally, MERCOSUR and its associated States wish in particular to congratulate the Director General and the Agency on the Nobel Peace Prize with which they were rightly honoured a few days ago. That is another demonstration of the great importance of the Agency’s tireless work for the sake of a better world and reaffirms the relevance of Mr. ElBaradei’s election to continue leading the Agency for a third term.

On behalf of the Pakistan delegation, I express the heartiest felicitations to Director General ElBaradei and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for having received the Nobel Peace Prize. That is well-deserved recognition of the vital work and important achievements of Mr. ElBaradei and of the Agency. We also warmly congratulate Mr. ElBaradei on his reappointment as IAEA Director General for another term. Both the Nobel Prize and his re-election reflect the confidence placed by the international community in Mr. ElBaradei’s dynamic leadership in a complex and challenging international environment. We assure Mr. ElBaradei and his colleagues of our full support and cooperation with a view to achieving progress and prosperity for all. We continue to agree with the Agency’s assessment that global socio-economic development needs will require a large increase in the supply of energy in the coming decades. The role of nuclear energy will be crucial in supplying part of that requirement, since nuclear power can serve the goals of sustainable economic growth and environmental protection. We note with interest that 60 per cent of all new nuclear power reactors are being built in the developing world. The Agency reported last year that 20 of the 31 reactors under construction worldwide were located in Asia and that 19 of the 28 reactors to be connected to the grids were in the Far East and South Asia. The pace of the construction of those reactors could be further increased if most States were not subjected to undue restrictions. The Agency’s role in the transfer of safe technology to developing countries has assumed added significance. We hope that the Agency will formulate a comprehensive policy to facilitate that objective. As one of the earliest members of the IAEA, Pakistan has long been a strong advocate of promoting and harnessing nuclear technology for peace, progress and prosperity for all. We attach the highest importance to the Agency’s Technical Cooperation Programme. We have benefited from and contributed to the Programme through training, the provision of experts and the hosting of seminars and workshops. We are pleased to note that the overall implementation rate of the Agency’s technical cooperation activities in Pakistan during 2004 achieved a record high of 75.8 per cent. We look forward to the strengthening and expansion of the role of technical cooperation and its contribution to the economic progress of developing countries. In recent years, Pakistan’s economy has experienced a high level of growth. The Government of Pakistan has launched a 25-year energy security plan to respond to that high growth rate and to meet the rising demand for energy. Nuclear power generation is an indispensable element of Pakistan’s national energy strategy. By the year 2030, our per capita consumption of electricity is expected to rise to only 3,920 kilowatt- hours (kWh) per year, as compared with the current 13,800 kWh per year in the developed world. With a growing population and an expanding economy, on the one hand, and a projected rise in the share of coal- produced energy from the current 6.5 per cent to 19 per cent in 2030, on the other, our limited fossil fuel resources present the great challenge as we try to strike a balance between pollution and sustained economic growth. Our energy plan envisages a substantial increase in nuclear electricity generation by the year 2030, representing an increase in the share of nuclear energy from the current 0.8 per cent to 4.2 per cent. For more than 30 years, Pakistan’s two nuclear power plants, the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant and the Chashma Nuclear Power Plant — both of which operate under IAEA safeguards — have had excellent operational and safety records. A reliable infrastructure has enabled us to commence work on another nuclear power station, the Chashma Nuclear Power Plant II. As we seek to operationalize our energy security plan, we envisage the importation of nuclear plants and other relevant civilian nuclear technology. Given our record of safety, the application of IAEA safeguards to our civilian nuclear power plants and the strict controls in place for all our nuclear facilities, programmes and technologies, Pakistan expects that the international community will lend its support and cooperation to meet our rising needs for nuclear power generation and its various applications in a number of areas. Pakistan highly values the commendable role being played by the International Atomic Energy Agency in the development and transfer of peaceful nuclear technology in agricultural, food, human health, water resources management, environmental protection and industrial applications. We share the Agency’s view that many of those applications are proving to be important tools in social and economic development around the world. We are pleased to note that the IAEA-assisted programme to set up a nuclear desalination plant at the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant is making good progress. The desalination plant, which will have a capacity of 1,600 cubic metres per day, should be operational by the year 2007. Pakistan’s four nuclear agriculture centres are engaged in helping farmers to grow and harvest more crops. Our first commercial food irradiation plant is now under construction and should be operational by the end of next year. It is located next to the existing irradiation facility for medical products. The 13 nuclear medicine and oncology centres operated by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission continue to provide facilities to more than a third of a million patients per year. The Government of Pakistan is planning to establish as many as five more nuclear medical centres. We accord the highest level of importance to the safety and security of our nuclear installations, particularly as we expand our nuclear power generation capacity for economic development. Pakistan has successfully established a strong safety culture in its nuclear activities. We are diligently adhering to the principles of the Convention on Nuclear Safety, which Pakistan signed at the time of its inception. We have further strengthened security measures around our nuclear installations to avoid any possibility of sabotage or illicit acquisition or trafficking of nuclear material. We actively participated in the proceedings leading to the amendment of the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material. Pakistan was one of the first countries to ratify the Convention on Nuclear Safety and has subjected itself to review by its peers at all three meetings of the contracting parties held since its inception. Pakistan has taken additional steps to augment the safety and security of nuclear installations and to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Those include effective steps, in cooperation with the international community, to eliminate an underground proliferation network which had tentacles in two dozen countries. We have actively cooperated with the IAEA in that endeavour. We urge other concerned countries to do likewise. We have wide-ranging security measures for our nuclear and strategic assets. A nuclear command and control authority, responsible for Pakistan’s strategic assets, has been in place since the year 2000. Those assets are vital for our strategic deterrence posture. There is no question of their falling into the wrong hands. An independent nuclear regulatory authority is in its fifth year of existence to ensure safe operation of nuclear plants. The authority has received the International Regulatory Review Team and Radiation Safety Infrastructure Appraisal international peer review missions, and has an aggressive action plan to address the recommendations of these missions. Last year, Pakistan’s Parliament promulgated a comprehensive export control act, which further built upon the existing regime to deal with nuclear and biological weapons, materials, goods, technologies, equipment and their means of delivery. Salient elements of our new law include the prohibition of diversion of controlled goods and technologies, including re-export, transhipment and transit; licensing and record-keeping; export control lists; and penal provisions of up to 14 years’ imprisonment and a fine of 5 million rupees. We are confident that there will be no proliferation of weapons of mass destruction from Pakistan. The safety and verification aspects of the IAEA mandate remain important pillars of the Agency’s mandate. As regards the strengthening of the Agency’s safeguards system, Pakistan stresses the need for a balanced approach between the promotional aspects and safety- or security-related concerns in all of the Agency’s functions. We support the call for States to fully comply with their respective safeguards obligations. At the same time, the Agency’s safeguards should not be used to serve partisan political objectives. Its verification regime will remain credible only if it is applied on a non-discriminatory basis, as stipulated in the Agency’s statute. Cooperation and greater understanding is required among all the States members of the Agency to advance the Agency’s mandate on the basis of impartiality, equity and professionalism. Efforts are also required to correct the public perception of IAEA as being just a nuclear watchdog agency. Its primary role in the promotion of peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology needs to be re-emphasized. We remain convinced that the IAEA’s activities must conform to its statutory responsibilities, its legal authority and international law. We share the view that the IAEA is not an investigative agency. It cannot be asked to perform tasks that are beyond the scope of its statute or not approved by its membership. Any reform in the Agency should be non-discriminatory and inclusive, and take into account the differentiated nature of obligations of member States. We also continue to believe that the following measures could help to enhance the Agency’s contribution to socio-economic development and to promote nuclear safety and security and its verification role: first, the preservation of its technical nature and preventing the politicization of its agenda; secondly, a greater emphasis on the technical cooperation activities of the Agency and its contribution to the development and practical application of atomic energy for peaceful uses and technology transfers to developing countries; thirdly, the allocation of larger and more assured resources for technical cooperation activities, technology transfer and training facilities for the developing countries; and fourthly, the greater involvement of the developing countries in the design and implementation of technical cooperation projects and increased outsourcing to developing member States for its Technical Cooperation Programme.

First and foremost, I have the pleasure to convey, on behalf of my delegation, our heartiest congratulations to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its Director General, Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, on the outstanding achievement of being awarded the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize. Malaysia believes that the award is testimony to and recognition of the great efforts carried out by both the Agency and its Director General in ensuring the safe and peaceful development and use of nuclear technologies. The award is also an acknowledgement of the Agency’s role in promoting atomic energy towards peace, health and prosperity. Malaysia is confident that the award will contribute further impetus to drawing more support and strengthening the Agency and its Director General as they further carry out their mandate and objectives in promoting the peaceful uses of atomic energy. Malaysia continues to recognize the value of nuclear technology for the achievement of sustainable development and the process of nation-building, as well as the role played by the Agency in that regard. We reaffirm our support for the Agency in its mission to promote and facilitate the development of nuclear technology for peaceful uses, as embodied in article II of its statute. In that connection, the Technical Cooperation Programme of the Agency remains a crucial component of its mandate and activities. Malaysia is both a donor to and recipient of the Programme and we commend the Department of Technical Cooperation of the IAEA for its continuous efforts in discharging its statutory mandate for the benefit of recipient member States, as well as for its creditable achievements. Malaysia believes that the most pressing global security issue facing all nations is the existence and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. In that regard, Malaysia wishes to underline the need for the nuclear-weapon States to fully comply with all their obligations and commitments under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and to live up to the practical steps agreed to in 2000 on systematic and progressive efforts to implement nuclear disarmament and, eventually, to achieve the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals. Malaysia also believes that the total elimination of nuclear weapons is of the highest priority and the only absolute guarantee against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons. Therefore, pending the achievement of the goal of the total elimination of such weapons, efforts to commence negotiations towards the conclusion of a universal, unconditional and legally binding instrument on security assurances should be pursued as a matter of priority. In that regard, Malaysia regrets that the 2005 Review Conference of the States Parties to the NPT was unable to adopt a final consensus document on substantive issues. Malaysia believes that the NPT regime and its review process should be strengthened and universalized. If nuclear-weapon States parties to the NPT do not continue to take all measures in good faith to dismantle and irreversibly eliminate nuclear weapons, concerns will be raised, especially by non- nuclear weapon States parties, over the relevance of the NPT. Nuclear-weapon States should not assume that the indefinite extension of the NPT in 1995 gives them carte blanche to retain nuclear weapons indefinitely. Non-proliferation activities will not succeed without disarmament by the nuclear-weapon States. Nuclear- weapon States parties cannot ignore the nuclear arsenals of non-States parties to the NPT. Those States must also be brought into the regime so that the NPT can become a truly universal disarmament regime. Malaysia also believes that the strengthening of the existing nuclear-weapon-free zones and the establishment of new ones in all regions of the world, on the basis of arrangements freely arrived at among the States of the region concerned, constitute a positive step towards attaining the objective of global nuclear disarmament. From a broader perspective, Malaysia wishes to reiterate that it remains fully committed to the objectives of the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction as a step towards general and complete nuclear disarmament, and that it fully condemns all acts of terrorism, including nuclear terrorism, regardless of the motivation of their perpetrators. It was in that spirit that Malaysia joined other States in signing, on 16 September 2005, the International Convention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism. In addition, the September 2005 meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors also authorized the IAEA Director General to conclude and subsequently implement the Protocol Additional to the Agreement between the Government of Malaysia and the IAEA for the Application of Safeguards in Connection with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Malaysia strongly reaffirms article IV of the NPT, which provides for the basic and inalienable right of all Member States to undertake research on, produce and use atomic energy for peaceful purposes. While fully supporting efforts for the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, Malaysia maintains the principled position that non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear technology should be addressed in a balanced and non-discriminatory manner. While guaranteeing Member States the legitimate right to peaceful uses of nuclear energy, the Agency should also continue its efforts to ensure that nuclear technology is not diverted in such a way as to further any military purpose. Malaysia, on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), has consistently expressed to the Director General and the secretariat of the Agency the Movement’s appreciation for their reports to the Board of Governors of the IAEA. The NAM has reiterated its full confidence in the ability of the Director General and the Agency in discharging their duties and responsibilities in an impartial, effective and professional manner. In this connection, Malaysia believes that the IAEA is the sole competent authority for nuclear verification, in the framework of the Agency’s NPT safeguards system, and that all issues or problems should be resolved within the mandate of the Agency. Malaysia once again expresses its appreciation to Mr. Horacio Bazoberry Otero of Bolivia, President of the IAEA General Conference at its forty-ninth regular session, held in September, and to the Vice-Presidents for their leadership in guiding the General Conference to a successful conclusion. My delegation commends Mr. Richard J. K. Stratford III of the United States for the efficient manner in which he chaired the Committee of the Whole. Malaysia is fully confident that the Director General and the Agency will carefully examine all the decisions and resolutions of the General Conference and make appropriate recommendations with regard to them in due course. Malaysia once again joins other NAM member States, as well as the Group of 77 and China, in Vienna in expressing confidence that Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General of the IAEA, will continue to lead the Agency for another term, until 30 November 2009, with a high degree of professionalism and impartiality and with the proper mandate from its policymaking bodies. Finally, Malaysia joins others in supporting the General Assembly draft resolution under the item before us. Malaysia considers the text to be a procedural one and that the provisions contained therein should remain unaltered, since the text represents broad agreement reached among States members of the Agency in Vienna. Malaysia believes that Member States should avoid any attempt to re- open issues agreed upon at the forty-ninth regular session of the IAEA General Conference in Vienna. If the adoption of the draft resolution is agreed upon by consensus without any change, Malaysia is prepared to add its name to the list of sponsors.

I should like, first of all, to say that the Sudan fully supports and endorses the statement made by the representative of Egypt on behalf of the Arab Group. I should also like, on behalf of the delegation of the Sudan, to sincerely congratulate Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei on his re-election as Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for a third term, as well as on the well-deserved award of the Nobel Peace Prize. We also congratulate all IAEA officials for that award, since the honour bestowed on Mr. ElBaradei is, indeed, an honour for all of them, too. The Sudan expresses its appreciation of and support for the Director General’s report, which is before the Assembly. The report reflects the tireless efforts that have been made by the Agency to guarantee and safeguard the peaceful use of nuclear energy for the well-being of humankind. It also reflects the Agency’s efforts to establish a nuclear-weapon-free world. The Middle East is on the edge of an abyss because of Israel’s monopoly on nuclear weapons and its total refusal to adhere to the Treaty on the Non- Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). The international community must therefore take all necessary measures to ensure that Israel abandons its nuclear weapons and agrees to join the Treaty immediately. The use of nuclear technology for peaceful purposes is a right that is guaranteed by the NPT. Given the economic and developmental advantages that such technology brings, my delegation supports the right of the Islamic Republic of Iran to benefit from it within the framework of the Treaty. We call upon the European Union and the Islamic Republic of Iran to base their dialogue on Iran’s nuclear programme on principles of credibility and transparency. My delegation greatly respects and appreciates the activities of the IAEA in Africa. We have seen at first hand the results of such activities in a number of important areas, such as combating malaria and chronic diseases spread by tsetse flies, its work on groundwater in the Nile Basin and elsewhere, and the multifaceted aspects of the African Regional Cooperative Agreement. My delegation reiterates its approval of and appreciation for the report of the IAEA submitted by the Director General. We also express our support for the draft resolution before the Assembly.

Let me take this opportunity to convey our heartiest congratulations to Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and to the International Atomic Energy Agency for the award of the Nobel Peace Prize for 2005. As a founding member of the Agency, India cherishes the recognition by the Nobel Committee of its outstanding contribution to world peace and security. We are confident that, as a distinguished son of a developing country, Mr. ElBaradei will continue to understand the South’s problems and its aspirations. An essential feature of the centrality of the Agency in advancing the peaceful use of nuclear energy is the fact that problems that may arise in that regard have to be addressed and resolved within the Agency. We heard during the course of the deliberations a suggestion that some of the countries that have not joined the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) so far should do so. I wish to reiterate that India remains strongly committed to disarmament and non-proliferation. However, asking us to join the NPT is like tilting at windmills. We continue to regard the NPT as a deeply flawed and discriminatory treaty. Confidence in the International Atomic Energy Agency is based on its traditions of expertise, professional competence, objective standards and impartial action. It is important that non-discrimination should remain a vital consideration. The scope of instruments should not be subject to reinterpretation without formally amending them. Goal posts should not be selectively shifted beyond legal obligations. We are also not in favour of Member States using technical bodies to conduct foreign policy by other means, since that is contrary to the charters of those bodies, just as we are not in favour of the United Nations Security Council arrogating to itself legislative and judicial powers, since they were never mandated by the Charter and sometimes violate jus cogens. Global climate change, the sustainability of energy resources, the need to meet ever increasing energy needs in order to support economic development and concerns regarding escalating trends in fuel prices point towards the inevitability of nuclear power. A global nuclear renaissance is now a reality. India, which has one-sixth of the world’s population, is on a rapid economic growth path. A recent study has revealed that we will need to augment our electricity generation nearly ten-fold in the next four to five decades. That would constitute a significant fraction of global electricity generation. Deriving a large fraction of the energy from nuclear power would be of immense benefit in the context of environmental and sustainability concerns for India as well as for the rest of the world. Nuclear energy is thus an important and inevitable option for India. Seeking to realize that objective, we have, inter alia, been pursuing a self-reliant indigenous nuclear power programme. The programme is designed to realize our long-term energy requirements utilizing our vast thorium resources. This is of crucial importance to us, as our uranium resources are modest. We look forward to a rapid growth in nuclear power generation capacity in India, based on full international civilian nuclear cooperation, as we continue our efforts to develop appropriate indigenous technologies aimed at the realization of the ultimate goal of large-scale utilization of thorium for energy production — not only in the form of electricity but also through the generation of hydrogen. India is a unique case. It is as a responsible country with advanced nuclear technologies developed in a self-reliant manner and with large-scale energy requirements. Those requirements have ramifications for protecting the global climate, ensuring sustainability of energy resources and restraining the escalating spiral of fuel prices. India has an impeccable record in terms of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and related technologies and adherence to all its international commitments. We expect that this will, by example, contribute to finally extinguishing restrictive technology regimes. India’s willingness to advance civilian nuclear energy cooperation with international partners is based on the principles of sovereign equality and non-discrimination and is consistent with our national policy of maintaining the integrity of our three-stage nuclear energy programme and ensuring the full autonomy of our nuclear programme. I would like to highlight some of the recent developments in India. The first 540-megawatt (MWe) pressurized heavy water reactor (PHWR) unit at Tarapur has commenced commercial operations about seven months ahead of schedule. Unit I of Kakrapar Atomic Power Station has been operating continuously for more than one year. That is an Indian record. We have now embarked on the development of the fast breeder reactor-based second stage of our programme, with the start of construction of the 500 MWe prototype fast breeder reactor launched in October last year. The indigenously developed unique plutonium- rich mixed carbide fuel used in the fast breeder test reactor (FBTR) has performed extremely well, having operated past a burn-up of 148,000 megawatt day per tonne (MWd/t) without a single fuel pin failure. One of the important achievements during the year was the closing of the fuel cycle of the FBTR. The FBTR fuel discharged at 100,000 MWd/t has been successfully reprocessed. This is the first time that the plutonium- rich carbide fuel has been reprocessed anywhere in the world. Construction of five PHWRs is progressing on schedule. Along with the two 1000 MWe light water reactors (VVERs) presently under construction at Kudankulam in collaboration with the Russian Federation, they will contribute 3420 MWe additional carbon-free electricity to the Indian grids in about three years’ time. We have begun developing sites for new nuclear power units and have begun work to identify additional sites for further expansion of the programme. The design of the advanced heavy water reactor — an innovative Indian design aimed at moving further on the thorium utilization route — is under regulatory review. We intend to proceed further to take up its construction after the review process is complete. Work on the development of a compact high temperature reactor that produces hydrogen, which could be the most important energy carrier in the future, as well as the development of accelerator-driven systems that could sustain growth with thorium systems and enable incineration of long-lived radioactive wastes, is progressing well. The development of the laser-based uranium-233 clean-up system, a crucial element in the thorium utilization programme, has made significant progress. The steady state superconducting tokamak (SST-1) will soon be given its first plasma shot. We are looking forward to joining the International Thermonuclear Energy Reactor project involving nuclear fusion, as a full partner. The International Atomic Energy Agency plays a vital role in the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology in a safe and secure manner. As in the past, we have been working in close partnership with the Agency. Our experts are involved actively in the Agency’s International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO). India has committed itself to carrying out an INPRO joint study for the assessment of an innovative nuclear energy system based on high temperature reactors for the production of hydrogen using the INPRO methodology. India continues to offer training facilities, fellowships, and scientific visits, among other things, and to provide the services of our experts to other countries through the Agency. In the area of nuclear safety and security, India has ratified the Convention on Nuclear Safety and participated in the third review meeting of the Contracting parties held in April, as an observer. We also took an active part in the process to amend the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material. India, the United States and the IAEA have established a Regional Radiological Security Partnership programme. Within that framework, India offered to provide infrastructure and expertise on a regular basis for conducting international training courses in India under the aegis of the IAEA on issues relating to the security of radioactive sources and materials and to locating orphan radioactive sources in countries that are unable to deal effectively with such sources and have sought assistance from the IAEA. I wish to conclude by reiterating that the Agency is a unique multidisciplinary organization in the United Nations family. Together we should ensure that it grows from strength to strength.

On behalf of my delegation, I would like to thank Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), for his statement on the Agency’s report for 2004 and for the information he provided on the main developments in the activities of the IAEA in 2005. The IAEA’s annual report gives us a clear and analytical picture of the broad range of significant results of the Agency’s activities and its recent achievements in the fields of nuclear technology, safety, verification, security and management. Ukraine commends the IAEA secretariat and its Director General for their work. Allow me also to congratulate the IAEA and its Director General on their well-deserved receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize. Ukraine fully associates itself with the statement made by the representative of the United Kingdom on behalf of the European Union. I will thus confine myself to addressing those issues to which Ukraine attaches particular importance. The existence of weapons of mass destruction represents one of the greatest threats to international peace and security. Nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament cannot be considered separately and every effort should be undertaken to pursue the reduction of the nuclear threat. It is regrettable that the 2005 Review Conference of the States Parties to the Treaty on the Non- Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) failed to achieve a substantive outcome. We are convinced that the non-proliferation Treaty should continue to play an irreplaceable role in nuclear proliferation prevention, nuclear disarmament and the peaceful use of nuclear energy. For Ukraine, the practical steps for nuclear disarmament that were agreed upon at the 2000 NPT Review Conference remain important. Recent developments in the field of nuclear non-proliferation emphasize the need to strengthen the NPT regime in order to maintain the authority and integrity of the Treaty. The International Conference on Nuclear Security, held recently in London, noted that nuclear terrorism is one of the greatest threats to society and recognized that the IAEA has a leading role to play in the global efforts to improve the nuclear security framework and to promote its implementation. Ukraine underscores the significance of the safeguards system and of the importance of the work of the Agency in the implementation of the NPT safeguards provisions with a view to preventing the diversion of nuclear energy from peaceful uses to military purposes, detecting covert weapons activities and reducing the risk of nuclear and radiological terrorism. Recent developments have clearly demonstrated the necessity to make concerted efforts for the further enforcement of compliance with safeguards and addressing new proliferation risks and challenges. We therefore welcome the IAEA Board of Governors’ decision to establish a Committee on Safeguards and Verification and state our readiness to actively contribute to its activities. Ukraine fully endorses measures envisaged under the Additional Protocol. The preparatory activities for the ratification by Ukraine of the Protocol are under way. We expect the Parliament of Ukraine to ratify the Protocol later this year. Ukraine reiterates its support for Security Council resolution 1540 (2004) against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, which instructs all Member States to enact effective domestic controls to prevent such proliferation. Recently, at the United Nations world summit, Ukraine signed the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism. Ukrainian authorities have also started the process of ratification of the amendments to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material. As regards unresolved compliance matters, Ukraine is pleased to note that the most recent six- party talks, aimed at finding a solution to the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula, resulted in a joint statement. We are confident that a successfully negotiated settlement of that long-standing issue, maintaining the essential verification role of the IAEA, would be a significant accomplishment for international peace and security. Ukraine recognizes the right of Iran to make peaceful use of nuclear energy. At the same time, we support the IAEA’s efforts aimed at providing credible assurances regarding the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme. In that regard, Ukraine calls upon Iran to cooperate fully with the Agency and to implement the relevant Board of Governors’ resolutions. Next year will mark the twentieth anniversary of the Chernobyl catastrophe, which had a serious political impact and changed attitudes to nuclear energy all over the world. International regulations and standards for radioactive protection, national strategies for nuclear energy development, and safety and radioactive waste management measures have been substantially revised. We believe that, 20 years after the accident, it is now important to analyse the effectiveness of measures taken, to review the work accomplished over the past decades, and to outline an action plan for future. Ukraine commends the outcome of the IAEA International Conference, held under the rubric “Chernobyl — Looking Back to Go Forwards” in Vienna on 6 and 7 September this year. The report on the Chernobyl legacy constitutes a set of authoritative documents on the health, environmental and social impacts of the tragedy, reflecting the consensus achieved among the relevant United Nations agencies and the Governments of Ukraine, Belarus and the Russian Federation. We express our gratitude to the IAEA Director General for his call for the creation of the Chernobyl Forum and his support of its activities. In April next year, the Government of Ukraine will hold an international conference under the rubric “Twenty Years After the Chernobyl Accident — Future Outlook”. We highly appreciate the readiness expressed by the Agency and relevant international organizations to contribute to the convening of that conference. Ukraine will also initiate a special commemorative meeting of the General Assembly on the twentieth anniversary of the Chernobyl catastrophe in April 2006. I take this opportunity to invite representatives from all interested countries and organizations to take part in the conference and the General Assembly meeting and to contribute to their work.

On behalf of the Nigerian delegation, I wish to join others in extending our warm congratulations to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its Director General, Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, on their well-deserved award of the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize, announced earlier this month. The joint award is a tribute both to the Agency’s credibility and accomplishments in the areas of non-proliferation and the peaceful use of nuclear technology, and to the integrity, versatility and leadership qualities of Mr. ElBaradei at the head of the Agency over the past eight years, since 1997. By the same token, in our capacity as Chair of the African Union, Nigeria also wishes to congratulate Mr. ElBaradei, an illustrious son of Africa, on his recent re-election by the IAEA Board to a third term in office and his endorsement by the General Conference. Nigeria believes that both his unanimous re-election to a third term and the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize not only demonstrate the confidence of the international community in Mr. ElBaradei’s ability and effectiveness, but could also reinvigorate his commitment and dedication to the ideals of the IAEA, as well as the aspirations of Member States for objectivity and clear-sightedness in the discharge of his duties to the global community. My delegation is pleased to take note of the annual report of the IAEA for 2004, and the statement by the Director General this morning to the General Assembly concerning the major developments in the Agency’s activities during 2005. The Director General and his staff deserve our commendation for their excellent service. The Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria remains committed to the three main pillars of the Agency’s mandate and activities — namely, cooperation for peaceful nuclear technology, safeguards and verification. We cannot but agree with the United Nations Secretary-General’s message to the 49th General Conference of the IAEA in September 2005, which stated that the Agency plays a vital role in the maintenance of international peace and security and the promotion of development. The international community recognizes and relies on the global independence, technical competence and impartial verification capacity of global non-proliferation efforts. It looks to the IAEA to promote safe and peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology, which are important tools for social and economic development. We applaud the Agency’s continued fulfilment of this role as a catalyst for development of nuclear technology by the developing countries and as an agent for maintaining the safe use of nuclear energy. As a developing country, Nigeria attaches great importance to the Agency’s scientific and technical work in the transfer of peaceful nuclear technology applications, particularly in the areas of energy, health, agriculture, water management and environmental preservation. In the area of nuclear power, the Nigerian Government keenly looks to the IAEA for active collaboration in the years ahead to achieve energy for our development. As a country of over 120 million people, but with a per capita electricity consumption of only about 70 kilowatt-hours per year — in sharp contrast to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average of 8,000 kilowatt-hours per year — Nigeria’s energy requirements clearly point to a radical shift in favour of nuclear power. Such a shift would serve to alleviate the serious energy shortage currently impeding our development and assist the Government’s efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals to eradicate poverty and hunger. Mr. ElBaradei’s visit to Nigeria in January 2005 clearly brought these problems and challenges into sharper focus and heightened the attention of the international community concerning the pressing need for defining a new agenda for extending IAEA’s cooperation to Nigeria in the generation of electricity, based on nuclear technology. To that end, my Government has established appropriate nuclear legal and regulatory frameworks, as well as safety, security, safeguards and physical protection measures, in global transparency. They are being incorporated under the Agency’s technical cooperation projects scheduled for Nigeria’s Country Programme Framework for 2006 to 2011. What applies to Nigeria’s quest for reliable nuclear power generation also applies to other areas of nuclear technology and applications. Access to life- saving radiotherapy for cancer treatment, research and development to enhance food yields and agricultural production, nuclear technology for safe drinking water and seawater desalination, use of the sterile insect technique (SIT) to eliminate tsetse flies, and nuclear techniques to create a safer environment are all areas of application that are germane to the socio-economic development of the developing countries with teeming but needy populations, including Nigeria. That is why we fully endorse the Agency’s approach to develop support for domestic institutions, to develop national and regional infrastructures and to build human capabilities in those areas. The African continent has benefited from the Agency’s capacity-building in applying SIT for the eradication of tsetse flies and other pests. The Agency’s support through the African Union’s Pan- African Tsetse and Trypanosomiasis Eradication Campaign is happily yielding results, and Africa has begun to take effective ownership of the programme. We call for sustained IAEA cooperation in those important areas. Nigeria is also grateful to the IAEA for the technical assistance being rendered to Nigerian experts under various training schemes, including scientific visits to the Agency’s Marine Environment Laboratory in Monaco — which I myself had the opportunity to visit recently — as well as to the laboratories in Seibersdorf, near Vienna. We urge the Agency to continue and intensify its efforts to make peaceful nuclear technology and its applications available to the developing countries, without discrimination, as part of their inalienable rights under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). At this juncture, the Nigerian delegation would like to make three pertinent observations on other areas bearing on the Agency’s work. The first is the issue of non-proliferation vis-à-vis the disappointing failure of the 2005 NPT Review Conference in May this year. The Nigerian delegation considers nuclear non- proliferation and disarmament as two sides of the same coin that must be pursued with equal vigour in order to facilitate the IAEA’s safeguards regime and the Agency’s role as watchdog in the development of nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. My delegation believes that the vertical and horizontal proliferation of nuclear weapons, the qualitative sophistication of nuclear arsenals, the development of a new generation of nuclear weapons, the glorification of the possession of such weapons, as well as the development of doctrines for their use in warfare, cannot all be compatible with nuclear non- proliferation, nor, ultimately, with the work of the Agency itself nor with the maintenance of international peace and security, which must be achieved for all countries, large and small. We believe that as long as nuclear weapons exist and are stockpiled by some nations for their narrow security interests, exhortations about non-proliferation will continue to ring hollow. Secondly, the Nigerian delegation is disturbed by the recent report by the IAEA’s Illicit Trafficking Database that nuclear trafficking incidents are on the increase globally. About 121 incidents were reported to the Agency in 2004, some of which involved weapons- usable highly enriched uranium or plutonium being smuggled across national borders. As part of the group of developing countries with porous borders, Nigeria is concerned that radioactive materials not fall into the hands of terrorists or other criminals for malicious purposes that could cause harm to human health, endanger population centres or produce severe environmental or economic consequences, as the Agency’s report warns. We therefore call upon the IAEA and the international community to rise to the challenge to effectively control and secure nuclear material and nuclear facilities globally, and to offer technical training to the developing countries to detect and interdict radioactive sources at their borders. Thirdly, my delegation attaches utmost importance to the issue of staffing at the Agency, in particular the need to recruit staff with a wide geographical distribution and to increase the number of staff from the developing countries, and to ensure fair gender representation in the Agency’s professional cadres. A careful look at the present staff disposition of the IAEA still shows unfair and disproportionately low representation from developing countries, Africa being on the lowest rung of the ladder. Also, the IAEA has the lowest number of women professional staff of the entire United Nations system, with women professionals from Africa, again, at the bottom of the list. Nigeria therefore calls upon the IAEA to move expeditiously to rectify this gross anomaly by making a deliberate effort to seek out applicants for scientific and engineering positions from the developing countries, as well as encouraging women to apply for reserved positions, including the administrative cadres at the Agency’s headquarters. These measures, if implemented, would expand the vistas of opportunity to the developing countries in the development of their human resources in nuclear technology through the acquisition of appropriate expertise, and would give equitable representation to unrepresented and underrepresented member States of the IAEA, most of which belong to developing countries in Africa and elsewhere. In conclusion, my delegation reaffirms its full support for the indispensable role of the Agency in facilitating the development and practical application of atomic energy for peaceful purposes, in technology transfer to the developing countries and in nuclear safety, verification and security. We therefore call for continued international cooperation with the Agency in order to carry out its core mandate and related activities. Because of the tangible benefits of peaceful nuclear technology to human society, we must all strive to contribute to and strengthen the Agency in the crucial role it plays in global security and development. Hence, my delegation has decided to co- sponsor the draft resolution on the International Atomic Energy Agency (A/60/L.13) introduced by Japan.

First, the Chinese delegation would like to thank Mr. ElBaradei, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), for his detailed report on the work of the Agency during the past year. We note that, with the concerted efforts of the secretariat and all member States, the Agency undertook a considerable amount of work in the past year and scored remarkable achievements. We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Agency and its Director General on being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2005. We hope that, with the support of all member States, the Agency will play an even more positive role in promoting the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Over the past year, China, in furtherance of its commitment to promote the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons — two objectives enshrined in the statute of the Agency — took an active part in various activities of the Agency. In the field of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, Chinese has cooperated extensively with the Agency and other Member States with fruitful results. In September 2004, in addition to timely payment of its assessed technical cooperation contributions, China made a voluntary donation of $1 million in support of the Agency’s technical cooperation activities in Asia and Africa. In October 2004, China, together with the Agency, hosted in Beijing an international conference on nuclear facility safety, which addressed approaches to enhancing the safety of nuclear facilities in the light of the latest developments. On 7 April 2005, China and Bangladesh signed an agreement on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The 13th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering was held in Beijing from 16 to 20 May 2005. Furthermore, France and China signed the Fourth Minute of the Meeting of the China-France guidance and coordination committees on nuclear energy in Beijing on 19 May 2005. In the field of nuclear non-proliferation, China strongly supports the Agency in its efforts to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of its safeguards regime. In June 2004, China joined the Nuclear Suppliers Group. China welcomes the adoption by consensus of the relevant amendments at the Conference to Consider and Adopt Proposed Amendments to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, from 4 to 8 July. China is committed to ratifying the amendments to the Convention as soon as possible. Following China’s publication in 2003 of its white paper on non-proliferation policy and measures, China issued a new white paper, entitled “China’s endeavours for arms control, disarmament and non- proliferation” on 1 September 2005, giving a comprehensive description of China’s policies, positions and actions in the fields of arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation. That is a clear demonstration of China’s resolve and sincerity reagarding non-proliferation. I would like to take the opportunity to briefly introduce China’s positions concerning the nuclear issue of the Korean peninsula, as well as the Iranian nuclear issue. At the fourth round of the six-party talks concluded on 19 September, China, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation and the United States engaged in serious and practical discussions concerning the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Agreement was reached on the over-arching goal of the six-party talks and a joint statement was issued. The positive result achieved in that round embodied the political will of the leaders and Governments of the six countries to resolve the nuclear issue through dialogue. That result is also the product of over two years of intensive negotiations and unremitting efforts. That achievement was not easily arrived at and must be treasured. At present, the parties concerned have reached agreement on the ultimate goal and basic principles of the six-party talks, laying down a good foundation for pushing the talks forward. However, the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula is complicated. A thorough solution will involve a difficult process. There is still a long way to go for the six-party talks and many difficulties still lie ahead. China will, as always, firmly support a peaceful resolution of the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula through dialogue. It will promote the six-party talks and will continue to play its proper role. We will continue working together with all parties concerned, as well as the international community at large, for the ultimate realization of the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and the maintenance of peace and stability on the peninsula and in north-east Asia. Concerning the Iranian nuclear issue, China has continued to advocate an early and appropriate solution within the framework of the Agency and has supported the pursuit by the European Union (EU) and Iran of a long-term solution through dialogue and negotiation. We believe such an approach will be conducive to preserving the international nuclear non-proliferation regime, and peace and stability in the region. Developments since the Board of Governors of the Agency adopted the resolution concerning Iran in September have caused greater concern. Nevertheless, there is still room for the issue to be resolved within the framework of the Agency. The international community should not give up on efforts in that regard. It is imperative that the EU and Iran resume negotiations as soon as possible. We hope that both sides will remain patient, demonstrate flexibility and take initiatives to create conditions for the resumption of negotiations. China will continue to make use of all available opportunities to promote such negotiations actively and will continue to play a constructive role towards the ultimate and appropriate resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue.

Mr. President, as your friend and colleague it is a pleasure for me to see you in the Chair. I wish to take this opportunity to applaud the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mr. ElBaradei, for his relentless efforts to conduct the business of the Agency in accordance with its statute. The awarding of the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize is indeed a fitting recognition of his and his Agency’s work. We also view it as a vindication of his stance to maintain the independence, objectivity and impartiality of the work of the Agency. We also thank him for his erudite presentation earlier today. Bangladesh is convinced that the peaceful uses of nuclear technology, with the IAEA safeguards and verification regimes in place, would immensely contribute to our common endeavour to achieve sustainable development. In addition to electricity generation, nuclear technology may help tackle some old as well as contemporary development challenges that we confront. Those are related to hunger, disease, natural resource management, environmental pollution and climate change. It is a matter of satisfaction that the Agency has been playing an ever-increasing role in the application of nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. It has done so while maintaining strict standards for safety. We believe that nuclear energy, when produced in accordance with safety and environmental procedures, can be a useful way of meeting the increasing energy demand worldwide. The initial installation cost of a nuclear power plant may be high; its operating costs, however, are relatively low and stable. That renders it an attractive option. It is heartening to know that the IAEA is extending technical assistance to developing countries in that regard, including by training local experts. Bangladesh welcomes the Agency’s Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy (PACT). The enhanced and effective use of nuclear medicine in cancer management, we hope, would bring benefits to millions; that is particularly true of the developing world, for instance, through the early diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The training of professionals in member States would be critical for the success of PACT. Water resources management is a priority issue for all of us. 2003 was designated the International Year of Freshwater. Now we have declared 2005-2015 the International Decade for Action, “Water for Life”, to highlight the critical linkage between water and human development at all levels. The IAEA, we believe, can play a significant role in that regard by promoting the use of isotope technology for the protection and management of surface water and groundwater. Article IV of the NPT guarantees the inalienable rights of all States parties to the NPT to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. Those are to be without discrimination and in conformity with articles I and II of the Treaty. The NPT thus obliges States parties to cooperate among themselves in the matter of exchange of equipment, materials and scientific and technological knowledge and information on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, on condition that the provisions of articles I and II are complied with by the nuclear-weapon and non-nuclear weapon States, respectively. It is disconcerting to note that undue restrictions on exports to developing non-nuclear-weapon countries of material, equipment and technology for peaceful purposes persist through measures incompatible with the provisions of the Treaty. Those barriers must be removed. We wish to underscore the need for the IAEA, under its statutory obligations, to continue to pursue the goals of technical cooperation in the peaceful applications of nuclear energy as one of the three pillars of its activities. We wish to recall that the IAEA is entrusted with putting in place necessary safeguards and verification regimes, and monitoring their compliance in conformity with the obligations of the States parties to the NPT. We are disappointed that extraneous reasons are being employed by some nuclear-weapon States to deny the rights of non-nuclear-weapon States to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and technology. That happens even in their pursuit of sustainable development. There must be no attempt to use the IAEA Technical Cooperation Programme as a tool for political purposes. Bangladesh calls upon all concerned to engage in constructive dialogue in order to implement the provisions of articles I, II and IV in an environment of trust and confidence. Bangladesh’s unflinching commitment to nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation is well known. We are party to the NPT and the Comprehensive Nuclear- Test-Ban Treaty. We call for their universalization. We believe that the greatest threat to humanity comes from the continued existence of nuclear weapons and of their possible use or threat of use, and also that the best guarantee against nuclear weapons proliferation lies in their total elimination. We are concerned at the general inertia existing in the entire disarmament machinery. The Conference on Disarmament has once again failed to agree on its programme of work, stalling its substantive work. The Disarmament Commission, too, could not agree on an agenda for its substantive session. It is in that perspective that the failure of the 2005 Review Conference of the States Parties to the NPT was a huge disappointment to us. We believe, however, that our disagreements about how to proceed during the Review Conference have not in any way weakened our achievements of 1995 and 2000. Those decisions were adopted by consensus. We must therefore implement what we agreed upon, particularly the 13 practical steps for the systematic and progressive implementation of article VI of the NPT. We believe that those 13 practical steps continue to be the performance benchmark for the nuclear disarmament process. Nuclear proliferation, both vertical and horizontal, must be dealt with in a comprehensive manner. Negative security assurances are vital to the strengthening of the NPT. They discourage non- nuclear-weapon States from opting for nuclear weapons. That arrangement has largely been diluted in recent years through the imposition of unrelated preconditions by the nuclear-weapon States. We call upon the nuclear-weapon States to reaffirm their commitment to providing negative security assurances. That would go a long way towards preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons. It is important for us to look forward rather than to ruminate as to how we got to the present impasse. We need more innovative ideas, as well as the political will to cut that Gordian knot. That is also our hope, and hope is what sustains us in adversity, stimulates our belief in life and encourages us to forge ahead.

At the outset, I take this opportunity to join in congratulating the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its Director General, Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, on being awarded the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize. The Agency and its Director General can be rightfully proud of that recognition of their work in strengthening peace and security on our planet. The Republic of Belarus commends the focused and consistent efforts of Mr. ElBaradei to ensure the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. The IAEA’s work in the development and safe use of peaceful nuclear technology, including nuclear energy, is also of extreme importance to the entire international community. The past year has confirmed the complex situation that has arisen with respect to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). One key provision of the Treaty is the balance between the obligations and rights of non-nuclear-weapon States parties. Those States have voluntarily undertaken to refrain from developing any military nuclear potential. At the same time, the Treaty unambiguously confirms the inalienable right of those States to research, produce and use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. It would be difficult to overestimate the role of the Agency in ensuring that balance. The Republic of Belarus is a staunch supporter of strengthening the safeguards regime and strictly honours its international obligations under the NPT and its safeguards agreement. Yet another illustration of that support is its decision to sign the Additional Protocol on the safeguards regime. At this stage, one of the key challenges on the international agenda is the fight against terrorism, including nuclear terrorism. We are pleased to note the active efforts being made by the Agency in this area. Belarus is pleased at the successful conclusion of the process of developing and adopting an amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials. We believe that the entry into force of that amendment, which was adopted at the Diplomatic Conference in July, will make a significant contribution towards strengthening the regime of the physical protection of nuclear materials and nuclear facilities. The Republic of Belarus has begun to implement the intra-State procedures that are necessary for the entry into force of that amendment. Belarus is engaging in successful cooperation with the Agency in countering the illegal circulation and smuggling of nuclear and radioactive materials. Given that, since 2004, the Republic of Belarus has shared a border with the European Union, ensuring full radiation security on the border represents a contribution to the efforts to ensure safe boundaries for the member States of the European Union. In that regard, during the forty-ninth session of the IAEA General Conference, Belarus proposed the holding, in 2006 in Minsk under IAEA auspices, of a regional scientific- practical conference on preventing the illegal circulation of nuclear and radioactive materials on the border of the Republic of Belarus with the European Union. We look forward to support for that initiative. A priority area of interaction of the Republic of Belarus with the Agency is cooperation to overcome the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. We deeply appreciate the effectiveness of the IAEA’s Chernobyl technical cooperation projects, aimed also at the socio- economic rehabilitation of the affected areas. We were pleased also to note the Agency’s contribution to the work of the International Scientific Forum on Chernobyl, whose creation was proposed by the Director General of the IAEA during his visit to Belarus in August 2001. During the Forum’s final conference, held in September of this year in Vienna, the international community was presented with various approaches to assessing the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster and with recommendations on how to rehabilitate the affected regions. The work of the Forum is of substantive and practical significance for the optimization of policies aimed at overcoming the effects of the Chernobyl disaster and for the sustainable development of the affected territories, as well for the development of international cooperation as concerns Chernobyl. The Forum’s work represents a significant step forward in the consideration of all of the long-term consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. The Forum’s final document pointed out that a number of issues, including the medically related consequences of Chernobyl, are pending and require further in-depth study. The final conference of the Chernobyl Forum has convincingly demonstrated the need for further international cooperation aimed at studying and overcoming the consequences of the greatest radiation catastrophe in the history of humankind.

On behalf of the Government of the Republic of Indonesia, I would like to begin by warmly congratulating Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei on his reappointment to the post of Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for a third term. Indonesia is fully confident that under his excellent leadership, characterized by a high degree of diplomatic and technical professionalism, which has earned the respect and trust of the member countries, he will lead the Agency to the successful accomplishment of our collective objectives and the tasks of the Agency. Let me assure the Assembly of my Government’s full support and cooperation in carrying out the mandate entrusted to this important body. In that connection, having been elected this year to serve as a member of the Board of Governors of the IAEA for the period 2005-2007, Indonesia looks forward to working closely with Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei. Concerning the agenda item before this plenary, I would like also to express our appreciation to the Director General for the annual report of the IAEA on the activities of the Agency over the past year in various areas as well as for the statement he made earlier. Let me also avail myself of this opportunity to express our appreciation for its consistent efforts in past years in fulfilling its mandate and enlarging its core competence by responding to nuclear and related issues. The report of the IAEA reflects a recognition of the significance and value of the Agency’s work, which has an immense impact on the health and well-being of peoples worldwide as well as on world peace and development. The IAEA, with its comprehensive membership of countries from nearly all parts of the world, especially developing member States, has made its considerable contribution in recent years to the application of nuclear energy for social and economic development related to health, agriculture, water management and preservation of the environment. It has undertaken activities ranging from assisting countries to assess their groundwater resources and improve their agricultural productivity, to re-evaluating the seismic safety of nuclear facilities and assisting in the upgrading of their physical protection; and from supporting the development of national energy strategies to continuing efforts to ensure a more effective and efficient safeguards system. That, indeed, deserves continued and wholehearted support on the part of all its members. We applaud the IAEA for those and numerous other achievements. We welcome the attention devoted by the IAEA to the issue of technical assistance, which highlights three elements that are essential for the successful implementation of the Technical Cooperation Programme, namely strong Government commitment, the high quality of technical cooperation projects and adequate funding. We are encouraged by the country programme frameworks that are used to stimulate a structured dialogue between the Agency and the member States, aligning the country’s technical cooperation programme with national needs and priorities, and we support the increasing priority given to technical cooperation among developing countries, using local expertise and facilities to enhance the capacity of the programme. However, my delegation must emphasize that this should be unrelated to the donor countries’ contributions to the Technical Cooperation Fund, so that the funding can be assured, sufficient and predictable, so as to implement the programme as planned for the benefit of all recipient States. Pursuant to the Technical Cooperation report for 2004, my delegation notes with satisfaction that commitments by, and support from, member States were clearly marked by an increase in the Technical Cooperation Fund from $62.6 million in 2003 to $75.6 million in 2004. However, during the same period, extra-budgetary resources dropped by almost $1 million, and in-kind contributions also fell by around $0.4 million. Although the total amount of new resources for the technical cooperation programme increased, the Agency should make every effort to avoid further decreases in both extrabudgetary resources and in-kind contributions in coming years. With regard to managing technical cooperation for development, we welcome the restructuring of the Agency’s Department of Technical Cooperation into four new geographical regions, which will lead to the regrouping not only of staff responsibilities and tasks, but also of countries in a particular region. In that connection, my delegation hopes that the Agency will be able to arrange future briefings on developments during every phase of the restructuring process. Indonesia believes it is important to increase the representation of developing countries among Agency staff members. We are happy to note the Agency’s increasing attention to that issue, which is shown by its stressing the importance of recruiting staff who reflect the widest possible geographical distribution, including an increasing number of staff from developing countries. As indicated by the Director General’s statement at the forty-ninth General Conference of the Agency, there has been an increase in the number of member States — from 77 to 98 — represented among the professional staff, and the percentage of staff from developing countries has continued to grow. However, we share the concern that there has not been a sufficient and corresponding increase in the number of well-qualified female applicants. It is our common responsibility to address that unacceptable reality through initiatives that can lead to a substantial increase in their number in the Agency. Indonesia, together with other developing countries, attaches the greatest importance to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). We are, therefore, gratified to note, as pointed out in the annual report, that the Agency is assisting member States in their efforts to achieve the MDG target of halving the number of people who suffer from hunger by 2015, by providing technical support to develop and evaluate strategies to combat hunger and malnutrition. Indonesia recognizes the importance of strategies to combat malnutrition. However, limited financial resources and technologies have been the major constraints faced by developing countries, and we must address that problem as a matter of urgency. Moreover, we commend the Agency’s active participation in the promotion of sustainable development — which is one objective of the MDGs — through the coordination of the inter-agency publication Energy Indicators for Sustainable Development: Guidelines and Methodologies. The International Atomic Energy Agency has the ability to effectively face several challenges related to the issues of verification and the safeguards system. We appreciate the Agency’s extensive efforts to strengthen the verification system and welcome the positive developments with respect to the status of safeguards agreements and additional protocols, which have steadily increased. As indicated in the Director General’s report covering the past year, NPT safeguards agreements for five more States and additional protocols for nine more States have entered into force. Thus, there are now a total of 71 States with additional protocols either in force or provisionally applied. Concerning the application of IAEA safeguards and nuclear verification, my delegation has repeatedly pointed out that the additional protocols are the centrepiece of the Agency’s response by strengthening the effectiveness and improvement of the safeguards system as a contribution to global non-proliferation objectives. They are especially needed because they can provide credible assurances regarding the non- diversion of nuclear materials and the absence of undeclared nuclear materials and activities. To facilitate those measures, there have been, over the past year, some initiatives aimed at strengthening the integrity of the IAEA safeguards regime. In that regard, we recall the creation of the Committee on Safeguards and Verification aimed at strengthening the safeguards system. While certain situations may demand a strong, effective and adaptable safeguards regime, we believe that the Committee should play a measured role, supplementing the work of the Agency. In other words, the work of the new Committee should not duplicate that of the Agency. Indonesia looks forward to having a clearer picture of Committee’s mandate and to participating in the discussions on its functioning. We encourage the Agency to continue its leadership as the sole competent nuclear verification authority within the framework of the Agency’s safeguards system. We believe that it is important that the Agency preserve the integrity, professionalism and impartiality that have long characterized its work. The International Atomic Energy Agency plays a constructive role in working towards a comprehensive settlement that will provide assurances to the international community that all nuclear activities are being carried out for exclusively peaceful purposes. It is encouraging to note the developments thus far with regard to the nuclear issue in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. In that regard, we welcome the progress made through the Six-Party Talks and the commitment undertaken by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programmes and to observe the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the IAEA safeguards. Indonesia, in line with the position of the Vienna Chapter of the Non-Aligned Movement, believes that all issues related to safeguards and verification should be resolved within the framework of the Agency, on the basis of technical considerations and, most importantly, through constructive dialogue, negotiation and peaceful means. In that regard, we reaffirm the importance of the basic and inalienable rights of all member States to develop atomic energy for civilian and peaceful purposes. The IAEA and its member States — especially the parties involved — should recognize that substantive progress has been made in resolving the issues outstanding in the area of safeguards implementation. As stated earlier, we commend the technical cooperation programme of the Agency, because it has been playing a valuable role in development activities involving nuclear technology. Indonesia remains a strong supporter of the Agency’s technical cooperation activities and has consistently pledged and paid its contributions to the Technical Cooperation Fund. We therefore attach great importance to the Agency’s technical cooperation programme. As in the past, we have pledged our contribution to the Technical Cooperation Fund for 2006. I wish to express our high appreciation to the International Atomic Energy Agency for providing Indonesia with continuous support, including the three recent technical cooperation projects relating to preparations for the construction of a nuclear power plant that have been initiated by several responsible institutions in Indonesia. In anticipation of the new plant, our national regulatory body, the Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency of Indonesia (BAPETEN), has embarked upon a comprehensive programme to develop the entire necessary infrastructure, including the training of the required personnel, particularly in activities related to the licensing and inspection of the plant. We therefore continue to expect cooperation and assistance from the Agency, particularly in building the capacity of the regulatory authority. In that regard, intensive bilateral and multilateral cooperation with countries having greater experience in the development and operation of nuclear power plants has become a necessity. The 2005 Nobel Peace Prize, recently awarded to the Agency and to its Director General, should come as no surprise, because they fully deserved it. Therefore, we wish to take this opportunity once again, on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Indonesia, to wholeheartedly congratulate the International Atomic Energy Agency and its Director General, Mr. Mohamed ElBaradei, on being awarded the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize for 2005. That award undoubtedly underscores the excellent contribution of the Agency and Mr. ElBaradei to world peace through their efforts in preventing the use of nuclear energy for military purposes and in ensuring its use and technology for peaceful purposes in the safest way. It is our view that the work of the Agency and its Director General serves as an excellent example of the highest principles the United Nations stands for, and the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize will serve as an inspiration to many people around the globe. It is indeed a major and worthy recognition of the Agency and its Director General’s achievements and important contribution to the world and to global peace. In conclusion, when we look ahead, it is worthwhile to remind ourselves, on the occasion of this sixtieth anniversary of the United Nations, that the IAEA’s role is crucial in addressing the new challenges that the United Nations is confronted with. In the multilateral context, the United Nations in general and the IAEA in particular are in a unique position to find new paths that could provide the impetus for international actions to significantly contribute to world peace and development. For our part, let me reaffirm Indonesia’s strong support for the Agency and the United Nations in carrying out their respective mandates to promote the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, and at the same time I would like to reiterate Indonesia’s serious commitment to nuclear disarmament and non- proliferation and to supporting the inalienable rights of all States to nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. Finally, my delegation would like to join in the consensus adoption of the draft resolution on the IAEA, contained in document A/60/L.13.