IAEA Board of Governors met in Vienna
On September 12-16, 2022, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors meeting took place in Vienna, where nuclear safety, nuclear security, guarantees, nuclear technologies and other issues of the IAEA competence were discussed.
This was a planned the Board of Governors meeting in preparation for the IAEA General Conference which will take place the last week of September. Lithuania delivered national statements on three pertinent issues of the agenda - on Verification and monitoring in the Islamic Republic of Iran in light of UN Security Council resolution 2231(2015), on NPT Safeguards Agreement with the Islamic Republic of Iran and on the implementation of nuclear safety, security and guarantees in Ukraine.
Lithuania in its national statement on the situation in Ukraine, condemned Russia's actions at the Zaporizhzhia NPP (ZNPP), called on the Russian Federation to leave the site of the power plant and finally withdraw all its troops from the entire territory of Ukraine, respect its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. Lithuania stressed the urgent need for legally binding international rules prohibiting armed attacks against any nuclear installation devoted to peaceful purposes. There was also stressed the importance to ensure that the mentioned rules would entail a strict mechanism of rule enforcement and accountability.
One of the main issues during this IAEA Board of Governors was the resolution presented by Canada and Poland on the situation of Nuclear Safety, Security and Guarantees in Ukraine, which was voted and approved by a vast majority of Board of Governors members. In favour of the resolution voted 26 members, 7 members abstained and only the Russian Federation and China voted against. The resolution once again condemns the criminal actions of the Russian Federation against Ukraine's nuclear energy facilities, especially condemning the illegal presence of Russian military forces and the Rosatom personnel at the Zaporizhia NPP. It calls on Russia to stop shelling the Zaporizhia NPP, immediately to withdraw its forces both from the ZNPP area and from the whole territory of Ukraine. Support was expressed to IAEA Director General and his staff for their tireless efforts to control the threats posed by the armed conflict to nuclear safety, security and guarantees in Ukraine's nuclear energy facilities.
