Senior officials of the IAEA and the European Union (EU) highlighted joint achievements and reaffirmed their cooperation on a range of nuclear activities, during the eighth EU-IAEA Senior Officials Meeting in Vienna on Tuesday. “This is a strategic meeting, a discussion about how our important relationship can maintain relevance in these challenging times,” noted Jacek Bylica, Chief of Cabinet at the IAEA who chaired the meeting from the IAEA side.
Nuclear safety and security in Ukraine topped the agenda of the annual meeting, which was postponed since 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
EU Special Envoy for Non-proliferation and Disarmament, Marjolijn van Deelen, conveyed the EU’s “grave concern over the growing nuclear safety and security risks in Ukraine, as a result of Russia’s military aggression and indiscriminate attacks on several nuclear sites,” and reaffirmed the EU’s full support for the initiative of IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi to ensure the safety and security of all nuclear facilities in Ukraine. “The EU remains categorically committed to defending multilateralism, especially at this time when its foundations are being questioned,” she said. “The EU’s support for the implementation of the IAEA’s mandate remains strong.”