The regular session of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) took place in Vienna this week. Head of the Italian delegation was Ambassador Debora Lepre, Permanent Representative of Italy to the International Organizations in Vienna.
The session fell at a time of particular tension at an international level in terms of security – including nuclear security – and non-proliferation, which was reflected in the several sensitive scenarios on which the Board was called to deliberate. First of all, the situation in Ukraine, with the ongoing security risks associated with the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant under illegal Russian occupation, and the situation in Iran, with the increasing accumulation of highly enriched uranium and the limitaions posed by Teheran on the IAEA’s verification and monitoring activities.
Amb. Lepre pointed out the increasing nuclear proliferation risks arising from the current polycrises and reaffirmed the IAEA’s key role in promoting the peaceful use of nuclear sciences and technologies, also through the development of international security and safety standards.
The Board session also focused on the IAEA’s activities in the fields of technical cooperation and non-power nuclear applications, such as the IAEA-FAO joint initiative Atoms4Food, which was launched last year to promote international efforts supporting food security and the fight against hunger, one of the priorities also of the Italian G7 Presidency.
