14 October 2011 | Today the European Commission and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) celebrate 30 years of cooperation in the safeguarding of nuclear materials and facilities. This anniversary is marked by an event at the IAEA Headquarters in Vienna. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission has provided scientific and technical support to the work of IAEA since 1981, with over 100 scientists and technicians working on more than 25 projects. The anniversary is also an opportunity for both parties to plan their future joint activities.
"Nuclear safety and security are absolute priorities for the EU and in this context expertise on nuclear safeguards is extremely important for global security," says Dominique Ristori, Director General of the Joint Research Centre. "The JRC is constantly at work on state-of-the-art technologies for nuclear safeguards and training of nuclear inspectors to stay ahead of the evolving challenges, in its long-standing cooperation in support of the Agency's mission."
"The JRC has provided us with vital scientific and technical support which has helped us to implement safeguards more effectively," said Herman Nackaerts, Deputy Director General for Safeguards at the IAEA. "This has had a positive impact on the security of all the citizens of the European Union and beyond."
An important chapter in the collaboration between the two organisations is training: high-quality training programmes are provided by the JRC for the next generation of IAEA and EURATOM Inspectors. Other examples of cooperation include special tools to improve environmental particle analysis, a 3D laser-based verification system of nuclear facilities, new nuclear reference materials, and secure sealing for underwater nuclear spent fuel assemblies.
Future cooperation between the JRC and IAEA will be in line with the new priorities of the IAEA to further increase the safeguards' effectiveness and efficiency, through a customized approach increasingly focused at national level. This also involves the support of the European Commission in establishing the new IAEA Safeguards Laboratory in Seibersdorf, Austria.
