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Disarmament DiplomacyIssue No. 27, June 1998IAEA Board of Governors MeetingMeeting of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, 8-12 June 1998Statement by Director General Introductory Statement by IAEA Director General Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, Vienna, 8 June 1998 "Programme and Budget The proposed 1999 regular budget for Agency programmes is $219.3 million, which represents a 0.1 percent real reduction as compared with the 1998 budget. ... ... [B]udget reduction can be achieved through efficiency and savings, but there comes a point where the Secretariat must inform the membership that further cuts will hamper programme implementation. Since taking office I have initiated a process that is designed to ensure that the Agency is operating with maximum efficiency, and many actions are underway in that regard. But I think we are reaching the point where it seems that not much additional saving is possible. Thus, a call for the Agency to undertake additional new activities in a zero real growth budget, or a call for the current level of activities to be maintained in a zero nominal growth budget, will require some degree of programme cuts. ... For the past decade the Agency has basically maintained the regular budget at zero real growth. For 1999, the Agency has to rely on extrabudgetary resources of some $35 million to permit programme implementation. The problem of resources will be even further exacerbated when the time comes for the Agency to assume new tasks in the field of safety, security of nuclear material or arms control and disarmament. This is my last point on this subject. I would urge Member States to give serious consideration, now, to the overall question of how they might be resourced before the Agency is confronted with these tasks, or before they are assigned to new, more expensive, organizations. In this regard, consideration might be given to the establishment of a fund for arms control verification and security of nuclear material. Safeguards In addition to the seven States which have already signed an Additional Protocol and the Board's approval of the Additional Protocol with Jordan, the Board now has before it for consideration and approval six more Additional Protocols and one Safeguards Agreement. The six Additional Protocols are with the United States; with Canada; with Ghana; between the 13 non-nuclear-weapon States of the European Union, the European Atomic Energy Community and the IAEA; between France, Euratom and the IAEA; and between the United Kingdom, Euratom and the IAEA. The Safeguards Agreement is between France, Euratom, and the IAEA, pursuant to the obligations of France under Additional Protocol 1 of the Treaty of Tlatelolco. I am encouraged by the momentum which has been established, and I would take this opportunity to urge all States to continue and accelerate their efforts to conclude Additional Protocols. Since the March Board meeting, the Secretariat has held consultations with a large number of States (Belarus; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Croatia; the Holy See; Japan; Ecuador; South Africa, Switzerland and Uzbekistan). The Secretariat has also taken forward its earlier discussions with representatives of Russia, China and the Republic of Korea. As a result of all these consultations, we would expect to put further Additional Protocols to the Board for consideration at its September meeting. …" Source: IAEA web-site, http://www.iaea.org/worldatom © 1998 The Acronym Institute. |