IAEA reaffirms safety as top priority in nuclear technologies

The IAEA underlines safety as the top priority in using nuclear technologies. Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Yukiya Amano made the statement during the 61st session of the IAEA General Assembly on 18 September, BelTA has learned.

Yukiya Amano believes: “Safety and safeguards are extremely important in all applications of nuclear technologies, including for energy or non-energy purposes. They represent obligations of countries at the national level but the IAEA plays the central role in ensuring effective international cooperation. Lessons learned from the Fukushima accident are now part of the IAEA’s nuclear safety requirements. They will become part of the global safety practice. It is necessary to continue bolstering safety culture.”

In his words, the nuclear program of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea raises serious concerns. The nuclear test that North Korea staged on 3 September is the sixth one on record and the largest so far. They invoke regret. “I encourage the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to fully honor its commitments in all the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council and the IAEA. The agency stands ready to return to North Korea when political events make it possible,” said Yukiya Amano.

The 61st session of the IAEA General Conference will last till 22 September. A Belarusian delegation led by Deputy Energy Minister Mikhail Mikhadyuk is taking part in the event. An exhibition dedicated to safety as a priority in Belarus’ nuclear energy program will be arranged on the sidelines of the conference. The exhibition will focus on the nuclear power plant, which is being built not far from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast.