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Highlights of the 53rd IAEA General Conference
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IAEA, 14 Sep 2009.IAEA headquarters-Vienna

 

Senior representatives of the 150 Member States of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are meeting at the Vienna International Centre (VIC) for the five-day annual IAEA General Conference to discuss major topics on the organization's agenda.

 

 

Highlights:

September 14

• Conference elected Jennifer MacMillan of New Zealand as President

• Rwanda and Cambodia became the newest Member States of the IAEA. Membership takes effect once the required legal instruments are deposited with the Agency.

• Director General ElBaradei addressed to the General Conference

• General Conference Confirmed the appointment of Yukiya Amano as the new Director General

 

September 15

• The IAEA's Scientific Forum on Energy for Development opened in Vienna, Austria. The Forum is being held in conjunction with the General Conference and will examine issues revolving around the need to assure universal access to affordable energy services and eliminate energy insecurity worldwide.

• The IAEA General Conference adopted its agenda, allocating items for discussion among Conference bodies.

• Delegates from the Russian Federation and Serbia today signed a trade contract laying down the groundwork for the final repatriation of spent nuclear fuel from Vinca Institute in Serbia to the Russian Federation. The Foreign Trade Contract (FTC) is a pre-condition for any spent fuel repatriation project to Russia, setting provisions for the transport, reprocessing, storage and subsequent disposal of the high-level waste in Russia.

• Uranium mining industry experts and government ministers met today during the General Conference to discuss prospects and challenges for uranium production, demand and supply. The IAEA projects that nuclear power generating capacity in the medium term will increase to between 511 GW(e) and 807 GW(e) of generating capacity by 2030. And this will create increased demand for uranium.

 

September 16

•  Scientific Forum Continues for a Second Day

• The IAEA celebrated 25 years of the Regional Agreement of Technical Cooperation for the Promotion of Nuclear Science and Technology in Latin America and the Caribbean (ARCAL). The regional agreement aims to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy as well as its applications for sustainable development.

• National nuclear regulators focused on licensing and the safe geological disposal of nuclear waste during the IAEA's General Conference. Finland, France and Sweden are in the process of creating geological repositories as long-term disposal for spent nuclear fuel and high level waste. Nuclear regulators from these countries and the United States shared their insights on legislating, siting and licensing geological repositories.

• Argentina's Balseiro Institute becomes IAEA's 1st Collaborating Centre in Latin America

 

September 17

• Eleven countries have been newly elected to serve on the 35-member IAEA Board of Governors for the period 2009-2011. The action was taken by Member States meeting at the IAEA General Conference in Vienna this week. The  For the 2009-2010 period, the new composition of the 35-member IAEA Board is: Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Canada, China, Cuba, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Japan, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, Romania, Russian Federation, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Ukraine, Uruguay and Venezuela. The Board meets Tuesday, 22 September, to elect its new chairman and officers.

• IAEA Scientific Forum Links Energy and Development

• The IAEA's 53rd General Conference of Member States concluded in Vienna, with over 1 400 delegates from IAEA Member States attending the week-long event. Following discussion, the General Conference adopted resolutions on the following items: the Agency's Programme and Budget for 2010-2011; measures to strengthen international cooperation in nuclear, radiation,transportation and waste safety; nuclear security - measures to protect against nuclear terrorism; strengthening of the Agency's technical cooperation activities; strengthening the Agency´s activities related to nuclear science, technology and applications; strengthening the effectiveness and improving the efficiency of the safeguards system and application of the Model Additional Protocol; implementation of the NPT Safeguards Agreement between the Agency and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea; application of IAEA safeguards in the Middle East; and Israeli nuclear capabilities. The item on the prohibition of armed attack or threat of attack against nuclear installations, during operation or under construction was included in a Presidential statement.

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