Vienna: In 2024, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) applied safeguards for 190 States with safeguards agreements in force, according to the Safeguards Statement and Background for 2024, recently published. This involved performing more than 3,000 in-field verification activities at over 1,300 nuclear facilities and locations outside facilities worldwide.
According to EMM, the IAEA verifies States’ commitments to use nuclear material and technology solely for peaceful purposes through these safeguards. The annual Safeguards Statement presents the IAEA’s findings and conclusions from its nuclear verification work throughout the year.
The Safeguards Statement and Background for 2024 indicates a trend from previous reports: the amount of nuclear material and facilities under IAEA safeguards continues to increase, said Massimo Aparo, Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Safeguards at the IAEA. As more countries aim to incorporate nuclear power into their energy mix, the IAEA’s workload is expected to grow.
In 2024, several countries, including the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Fiji, Mongolia, Oman, and Sierra Leone, amended their original Small Quantities Protocols (SQPs) to reflect the revised standard text, while Saudi Arabia rescinded an SQP. For the 15 States with SQPs based on the original text, the Agency remains ready to provide assistance towards the amendment or rescission of these SQPs.
During the year, a comprehensive safeguards agreement (CSA) with a revised SQP text and an additional protocol (AP) came into force for Timor-Leste. Having an AP significantly enhances the IAEA’s ability to verify the peaceful use of all nuclear material by providing access to additional safeguards-relevant information and locations.
Of the 190 States where the IAEA applied safeguards during 2024, 182 had CSAs in force, with 137 also having APs in force. For 75 of these 137 States, the IAEA concluded that all nuclear material remained in peaceful activities. Notably, Morocco received this conclusion, known as the broader conclusion, for the first time. For 61 States, the IAEA could only conclude that declared nuclear material remained in peaceful activities, as evaluations regarding the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities are ongoing.
For 31 States with a CSA but no AP in force, the IAEA concluded that declared nuclear material remained in peaceful activities. At the end of 2024, three non-nuclear-weapon States party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) had yet to bring CSAs into force pursuant to Article III of the Treaty, preventing the IAEA from drawing any safeguards conclusions for these States.
For the three States in which the IAEA implemented safeguards via item-specific safeguards agreements (India, Israel, and Pakistan), the IAEA concluded that nuclear material and facilities remained in peaceful activities. Safeguards were also implemented in the five nuclear-weapon States party to the NPT under their respective voluntary offer agreements. For China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, the IAEA concluded that nuclear material in selected facilities remained in peaceful activities or had been withdrawn from safeguards as provided for in the agreements.
Ensuring that safeguards conclusions can be drawn for numerous States with safeguards agreements in force is a significant undertaking, said Aparo. As the IAEA moves forward, it is crucial to keep pace with the challenges and opportunities in international nuclear safeguards implementation.
To strengthen State capacity to implement safeguards, the Agency continued to support State or regional authorities responsible for safeguards implementation (SRAs) and State systems of accounting for and control of nuclear material (SSACs). In 2024, the Agency provided extensive in-person and online training opportunities for professionals in the safeguards field.
Additionally, 2024 saw the launch of a new cycle of COMPASS – the IAEA Comprehensive Capacity-Building Initiative for SSACs and SRAs – with four countries: Bangladesh, Plurinational State of Bolivia, Cameroon, and Ghana. Launched in 2020 by the Director General, COMPASS provides comprehensive assistance tailored to a State’s specific safeguards needs.
