Delegation from the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Represented by Macalester College
Position Paper for the International Atomic Energy Agency
Since its founding, the United Nations has made the fostering of peace and security among all nations its highest priority. On
July 29, 1957, the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) was created in response to United States President
Eisenhower’s “Atoms for Peace” address to the United Nations General Assembly. The IAEA stands upon three essential
pillars: nuclear verification and security, safety, and technology transfer. As an original member of the IAEA, the Democratic
Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka has long been committed to addressing nuclear issues on the international stage. Sri Lanka
was an original signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement
(NAM) and has since served on the IAEA Board of Governors from 2004-2006.
Former Secretary-General Kofi Annan once reminded the world “that our biggest challenge and our biggest failing is the
inability to agree on nuclear proliferation and disarmament”. Faced with this challenge, Sri Lanka hopes that substantive
strides will be made on the following topics set before the committee in this session: The Reintegration of Iran into International Regulations and Agreements; Implementation and Strengthening of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT); and Nuclear
Materials Management. With the emergence of nuclear energy as a viable fuel source, Sri Lanka believes in the importance
of creating frameworks that regulate the advancement of this technology and that are amenable to the entire international
community.
I. The Reintegration of Iran into International Regulations and Agreements
Two of the ten principles of the Non-Aligned Movement Bandung Asian-American Conference of 1955 are “respect[ing] the
sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations,” and “non-intervention or non-interference into the internal affairs of
another country”. Sri Lanka feels that it is imperative for all countries to remember these key principles while considering
methods for reintegrating Iran into international regulations and agreements regarding nuclear technology, such as the NPT.
Article IV, section one of the NPT states: “Nothing in this Treaty shall be interpreted as affecting the inalienable right of all
Parties to the Treaty to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination
and in conformity with Articles I and II of this Treaty”.
The right to sovereignty also comes with a responsibility to the greater international community to follow the multilateral
agreements to which these nations have agreed. The problem lies in the thin divide between peaceful nuclear power technology and nuclear technology aimed at the development of weapons. The internationally amenable IAEA safeguard mechanisms protect against a situation in which a country is able to exploit its rights as stated in the NPT to develop nuclear power
technology, and then abandon the treaty to develop nuclear weapons. Considering this possibility, it is of the utmost importance that all nations come together to strengthen the current safeguard mechanisms and monitoring systems, such as the
International Monitoring System (IMS) put into effect by the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). Sri Lanka
supports efforts to strengthen verification methods in resolutions such as A/62/21, addressing “Verification in all its aspects,
including the role of the United Nations in the field of verification”.
In addition, Sri Lanka encourages all countries to aid in strengthening current regulatory procedures. Sri Lanka would like to
reiterate the importance of honouring Iran’s rights granted to them as a signatory of the NPT, as specified by Article IV.
These rights can be realized by Iran once they are fully reintegrated into the regulatory mechanism.
Jayantha Dhanapala, former Under Secretary General for Disarmament Affairs of the United Nations advises that “it does not
help if you try to isolate a country...what you must try to do is to wean it away from its isolation and enter into a dialogue to
understand what their real needs are”. Sri Lanka urges the IAEA to keep this anti-isolation sentiment in mind while considering the reintegration of Iran into international regulations and agreements.
II. Implementation and Strengthening of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
As United States President Eisenhower said in his 1953 “Atoms for Peace” address: “A vast superiority in numbers of
[nuclear] weapons, and a consequent capability of devastating retaliation, is no preventive, of itself, against the fearful
material damage and toll of human lives that would be inflicted by surprise aggression”. As a founding member of NAM, Sri
Lanka joins other member nations of that body in its April 12, 2007 call to the United Nations for nuclear disarmament.
In the 2007 statement, the NAM made two key assertions. First, all states have the inalienable right to conduct research, and
produce and use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. Second, the operational status of nuclear weapons systems must be
reduced. In order to strengthen the NPT, it is imperative that current signatories follow the prescribed guidelines. In an effort
to advance the applications of peaceful nuclear technology, Sri Lanka performs research in the following areas: agriculture,
human health, industry, and ionizing radiation safety. Through Sri Lanka’s Atomic Energy Authority (AEA), Sri Lanka
regularly conducts safety tests of its domestic facilities, demonstrating its strong commitment to nuclear safety.
At the Science and Technology Conference in Vienna in 2007, IAEA Deputy Director General David Waller said that “the
pressing issue was how to further develop and promote these beneficial, peaceful applications, while at the same time prevent
the spread of nuclear weapons technology. That was ─ and indeed still is ─ the ‘nuclear dilemma’”. To address this “nuclear
dilemma”, Sri Lanka has signed on to relevant resolutions, such as resolution A/62/32, entitled “Reducing Nuclear Danger”.
Sri Lanka believes that the full implementation of Articles IV and VI of the NPT, which address the rights of all nations to
the pursuit of peaceful nuclear technology, and the disarmament of the current nuclear weapon states can circumvent this
dilemma. The republic of Sri Lanka is encouraged by the recent creation of a multitude of nuclear-weapon-free-zones. Sri
Lanka showed its support of the creation of such zones in resolution A/62/35, creating a “Nuclear-weapon-free southern
hemisphere and adjacent areas”. While Sri Lanka commends the adoption of the resolution on the “Conclusion of effective
international arrangements to assure non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons”
(A/62/19), Sri Lanka would like to see nuclear weapons states take more assertive steps toward complete disarmament. Sri
Lanka has consistently supported measures advocating nuclear disarmament, such as “General and complete disarmament”
(A/62/23), “Towards a nuclear-weapon-free world: accelerating the implementation of nuclear disarmament commitments”
(A/62/25), and “Promotion of multilateralism in the area of disarmament and non-proliferation” (A/62/27).
Furthermore, Sri Lanka would like to remind the committee of the various socially beneficial applications of nuclear
technology. Sri Lanka’s AEA has applied these technologies in many industries, including cancer research, agricultural
improvements, and the Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society (Eye Bank), and believes other countries should have the opportunities to benefit from these peaceful nuclear applications. In the spirit of international cooperation, Sri Lanka has coordinated,
through the Sri Lanka AEA, a regional technical program of the IAEA for member states of the Asia Pacific Regional
Cooperative Agreement in 2004-2005. Sri Lanka aided member nations in research, training, and development in Nuclear
Science and Technology of the IAEA. Therefore, Sri Lanka urges fellow member states to take steps to more fully utilize the
global framework of agreements and suggestions passed by this committee.
III. Nuclear Materials Management
Nuclear materials management is becoming ever more important as additional applications of nuclear technology are
discovered. Sri Lanka would like to acknowledge the re-emergence of nuclear energy as a viable fuel source. As IAEA
Director General Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei reminded us in his July 16, 2007 address, “energy is essential for development.
Nearly every aspect of development-- from reducing poverty to improving healthcare-- requires reliable access to modern
energy services”.
The 2007 annual report of the IAEA (GC(51)/5) estimated that global energy consumption will grow by 53 percent by 2030,
with 70 percent of that growth coming from developing countries, where 17 out of 29 nuclear reactors under construction are
located. As man depletes traditional fuel sources, Sri Lanka recognizes the emerging importance of nuclear energy with the
subsequent increasing risk of mismanagement. Sri Lanka believes that resolutions such as A/62/34 on the “Prohibition of the
dumping of radioactive wastes”, and A/62/33 regarding “Measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass
destruction”, are effective preliminary actions in achieving appropriate nuclear materials management.
Due to the dynamic, yet dangerous nature of nuclear technology, Sri Lanka emphasizes the importance of international
collaboration in nuclear technology development. David Waller of the IAEA said that “in the aftermath of Chernobyl, the
agency’s comprehensive reports of the accident helped to move the international nuclear community to recognize the need for
a global ─ not just a national ─ approach”. The importance of the NPT, the IAEA regulation mechanisms, and the newly
created IAEA Nuclear Accident Network, of which Sri Lanka is a part, will increase as nuclear technology comes to the
forefront of technological discovery. In anticipation of the further rise of nuclear technology, Sri Lanka thus advocates the
pursuit of a comprehensive international strategy for the proper maintenance of nuclear technology facilities.