Three More Countries Commit to Safe, Secure and Peaceful Use of Nuclear Technology

The Permanent Representative of the Republic of Belarus to the IAEA, Andrei Dapkiunas, deposited an instrument of ratification of the Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (A/CPPNM).

The CPPNM establishes legal obligations for Parties regarding the physical protection of nuclear material used for peaceful purposes during international transport; the criminalization of certain offences involving nuclear material; and international cooperation, for example, in the case of theft, robbery or any other unlawful taking of nuclear material or credible threat thereof. 

Its entry into force in 1987 and Amendment in 2016 were crucial milestones in the development of the international legal framework for nuclear security, as they remain the only internationally legally binding undertakings in the area of physical protection of nuclear material and of nuclear facilities used for peaceful purposes. The CPPNM as strengthened by its Amendment is relevant for all States, not just those with nuclear facilities or nuclear materials.

The Permanent Representative of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the IAEA, Mohamed ElMolla, deposited an instrument of ratification of the Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS).

The CNS aims to commit Contracting Parties operating land-based civil nuclear power plants to maintain a high level of safety by establishing fundamental safety principles to which States would subscribe. The Convention is based on the Parties’ common interest to achieve higher levels of safety that will be developed and promoted through regular meetings. It obliges Parties to submit reports on the implementation of their obligations for “peer review” at meetings held at IAEA Headquarters. This mechanism is the main innovative and dynamic element of the Convention.

Mr A.T. Chikondo, Secretary for Project Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation, in the Office of the President and Cabinet of the Republic of Zimbabwe, deposited six instruments on behalf of Zimbabwe.

One of these was the instrument of accession to the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage, which aims to establish some minimum standards to provide financial protection against damage resulting from certain peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Instruments of accession were also deposited to the Joint Protocol Relating to the Application of the Vienna Convention and the Paris Convention and the Protocol to Amend the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage. Since the objectives of the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage are largely mirrored in the Paris Convention on Third Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy, the Joint Protocol aims to establish treaty relations between the two Conventions, and to eliminate conflicts that may arise from the simultaneous application of both Conventions to the same nuclear incident.

During the event, Zimbabwe also acceded to the Convention on Nuclear Safety and accepted the Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material as well as the Agreement on the Privileges and Immunities of the International Atomic Energy Agency. The Agreement, approved by the Board of Governors in 1959, grants immunity to the Agency, its property and assets from legal processes, and gives the Agency the capacity to contract, acquire and dispose of property and institute legal proceedings.

Zimbabwe, which utilizes nuclear technologies in health, agriculture and research, had previously committed to four more multilateral treaties in nuclear safety and security at the Treaty Event during IAEA’s 65th regular session of the General Conference in 2021.

The Treaty Event, convened annually by the IAEA’s Office of Legal Affairs during the annual General Conference, aims to promote universal adherence to the most important multilateral treaties for which the Director General of the IAEA is depositary, and provide an opportunity to Member States to deposit instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.