Mr. Deputy Prime Minister, Excellencies, Distinguished Participants,
It is a pleasure for me to visit Thailand again and to welcome you all, on behalf of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), to this regional seminar which we are co-sponsoring with the Office of Atomic Energy for Peace and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand.
The aim of the seminar is to enhance understanding of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and I see this meeting as an important opportunity to encourage discussion on complex and sometimes controversial issues in a country that is moving to build its second research reactor and is holding open the option of nuclear power as one way of meeting its future energy needs. Nuclear issues are of concern not only to government officials and experts, but also to the media and the public at large. The technology can bring great benefits but, as with many other technologies, it requires an understanding of its benefits as well as its risks. And I look to our speakers, as well as all the participants, to help ensure comprehensive and wide ranging discussions. Please share any concerns or questions you may have at any stage of the proceedings, whether in the formal sessions or during the social events.
The Agency has had a close and excellent working relationship with Thailand, which has been a valuable member of the IAEA since its inception over forty years ago and has frequently served on our Board of Governors. Thailand has also played an important role in efforts to conclude and bring into force a nuclear-weapon-free-zone agreement in this part of Asia, namely the Treaty of Bangkok which has been in operation since 1997.
For its part, the IAEA has been able to assist Thailand over the years through a number of technical co-operation programmes — for example, in health care, agriculture and industry. We also note the successful progress achieved through the Regional Co-operative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology in Asia, known as RCA. Within that framework countries of the region have been working together with success. Thailand, I believe, has derived benefit from this work in various fields such as radiopharmaceuticals, human tissue banking, radiotherapy and food preservation through irradiation.
Later this morning I will be describing in more detail the role and prospects of nuclear energy as I see them, but I would like at this stage just to mention some of the main thrusts of the IAEA’s current activities for those of you who may not be familiar with them.
The IAEA was established in 1957 as a UN system organization for the harnessing of nuclear science and technology for the benefit of humankind. Its genesis is found in the "Atoms for Peace" concept by US President Eisenhower, which was a call to nations to refrain from obtaining or building nuclear weapons in return for having access to nuclear technology and knowledge for peaceful purposes. That is still the essential foundation of the Agency today, although the range of our work has steadily broadened. Our programme now is grouped around what we call the three pillars of technology, safety and verification. Let me say a few words about each.
The Agency is the global centre for international co-operation in the field of nuclear science and technology. In addition, it fosters a large technical co-operation programme to ensure the safe and appropriate transfer of both technology and know-how to its many Member States in the developing world. This programme thus helps nations to meet a variety of social, economic and environmental needs identified in and by themselves. This work corresponds roughly to one third of our total resources.
The second pillar of the IAEA’s work relates to the field of nuclear, radiation and waste safety. Since the tragic accident at the Chernobyl power plant in Ukraine in 1986, the IAEA has redoubled its efforts in the safety field as a forum for the development of international conventions and norms and for providing expert safety review and advisory services upon request, including training. I might just mention one recent example of our work in this area, when we sent a team to Japan last September to draw up a preliminary report on the accident at the Tokaimura nuclear fuel conversion facility in which three workers were seriously exposed to radiation.
In recent years, however, the activity which has perhaps attracted most public and media attention has been the IAEA’s safeguards role or verification to ensure the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Our inspectors routinely check nuclear materials at some one thousand nuclear facilities in over 180 countries that have undertaken a commitment to use nuclear energy exclusively for peaceful purposes. It is certainly our hope that as we move towards nuclear disarmament the system will become universal.
In conclusion, let me thank our Thai hosts for their generous and effective support in organizing the seminar and all of you here today for the interest demonstrated by your presence. I wish you a fruitful meeting that will result in increased understanding of how Thailand, like other nations in Asia and worldwide, can reap the benefits of nuclear technology.