Director General Briefs Board on Iran Developments, Ukraine Support, Technical Assistance and More

In the Islamic Republic of Iran, IAEA inspectors have gone back to carry out inspections at many of the nuclear facilities unaffected by June’s military attacks. 

Mr Grossi said he was in regular contact with Iran, and more engagement was needed to restore full inspections, including at the affected sites.

“I continue to be convinced that there is no other solution but a diplomatic solution to this whole thing, and that requires engagement and understanding on our part and also full compliance on the part of Iran,” he said, referring to Iran’s obligations under the non-proliferation treaty agreement and comprehensive safeguards agreement.

Mr Grossi gave more details on how the IAEA is working with Iran to give Agency inspectors access to Iran’s inventories of low enriched uranium and high enriched uranium in his written statement to the Board.

Mr Grossi also spoke of the IAEA’s continuous presence at five nuclear facilities in Ukraine. The Agency remains committed to providing any support it could to help ensure the safe and secure operation of nuclear facilities in Ukraine in what he described as an “extremely perilous and extremely fragile” situation. Successful mediation from the Agency has enabled indispensable repairs to the Dniprovska and Ferosplavna power lines to be carried out, ending a month-long loss of off-site electricity to the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant.

A total of 217 missions comprising 176 Agency staff members have been deployed at the five Ukrainian nuclear power plant sites during the conflict so far. A total of 174 deliveries has ensured that nuclear safety and security equipment worth €20.5 million has reached Ukraine.

Mr Grossi shared achievements of the IAEA’s flagship initiatives, and technical cooperation programme, which is the focus of the Technical Assistance and Cooperation Committee meeting this week. The Atoms4Food initiative continues to improve food security with new missions to assess the situation and the needs in Member States.

The International High-Level Forum on NUTEC Plastics will be hosted next week in Manila, Philippines, marking five years of the NUTEC achievements. 

Almost 100 countries have now joined the IAEA’s Rays of Hope: Cancer Care for All initiative. The IAEA is partnering with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to develop training curricula for pediatric cancer care and supporting experts in AI. 

“Since Rays of Hope was established almost three years ago, new cancer facilities have been established … Hospitals are being built. Technology is being transferred. This is changing the reality on the ground,” Mr Grossi said.

ZODIAC is using science and international collaboration to detect viruses and diseases to prevent pandemics. ZODIAC and the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (VETLAB) Network, supported scientists in Senegal sequenced the full genome of the Rift Valley Fever virus, impacting Senegal, Mauritania and Gambia.

Mr Grossi spoke of the IAEA’s participation in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil. The IAEA hosted more than a dozen events at its Atoms4Climate Pavilion, engaging countries and partners on topics such as small modular reactors (SMRs), climate-smart agriculture, water and soil protection, fusion energy and blue carbon ecosystems.

The momentum of nuclear was also evident at recent G7 and G20 meetings, Mr Grossi said. 

“The days of a debate, nuclear yes, nuclear no, are over. Everybody agrees that nuclear is important,” he told the Board.

Mr Grossi also updated the Board on his visit to Chengdu, China for the 30th IAEA Fusion Energy Conference and the 2nd Ministerial Meeting of the World Fusion Energy Group last month, and his visit to the ITER organization last week, which “the biggest international cooperative platform on fusion”.

He also looked ahead to the IAEA’s first symposium on Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Energy which will be held in Vienna in December. 

“As you know, artificial intelligence is one of the main drivers of new nuclear, the small modular reactors and the need for nuclear energy,” he told the Board.

 “And this will give us a unique platform where apart from us, governments, and regulators, we will have all the big companies from all over the world … we will hear from the entrepreneurs, the private sector.”

Mr. Grossi concluded his statement by presenting the Board with two reports on safeguards-relevant aspects of naval nuclear propulsion programmes in Australia and Brazil. 

He also welcomed the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste’s recent application for IAEA membership.