Vienna: In 2024, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) applied safeguards to 190 states with active safeguards agreements, as detailed in the recently published Safeguards Statement and Background for 2024. This entailed conducting over 3000 in-field verification activities at more than 1300 nuclear facilities and locations globally.
According to EMM, the IAEA safeguards ensure that states adhere to commitments to use nuclear materials and technology solely for peaceful purposes. The annual Safeguards Statement outlines the IAEA’s findings and conclusions from its nuclear verification activities conducted throughout the year.
The report indicates a continuing trend where the amount of nuclear material and facilities under IAEA safeguards continues to grow. Massimo Aparo, Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Safeguards at the IAEA, noted that with an increasing number of countries looking to incorporate nuclear power into their energy strategies, the agency’s workload is expected to rise.
In 2024, several states, including Bolivia, Fiji, Mongolia, Oman, and Sierra Leone, updated their Small Quantities Protocols (SQPs) to align with the revised standard text, while Saudi Arabia rescinded its SQP. The IAEA remains ready to assist the 15 states with SQPs based on the original text in amending or rescinding these protocols.
A comprehensive safeguards agreement with a revised SQP and an additional protocol came into effect for Timor-Leste. The additional protocol enhances the IAEA’s capability to verify the peaceful use of nuclear material by granting access to more relevant information and locations.
Of the 190 states where the IAEA applied safeguards in 2024, 182 had comprehensive safeguards agreements (CSAs) in force, with 137 also having additional protocols. For 75 of these states, the IAEA confirmed that all nuclear material remained in peaceful activities, noting this broader conclusion for Morocco for the first time. For 61 states, only declared nuclear material was confirmed to remain in peaceful activities, as evaluations regarding undeclared materials are ongoing.
For 31 states with a CSA but no additional protocol, the IAEA could conclude that declared nuclear material was used peacefully. By the end of 2024, three non-nuclear-weapon states under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) had not yet enforced CSAs, preventing the IAEA from drawing safeguards conclusions.
In India, Israel, and Pakistan, the IAEA confirmed that nuclear materials, facilities, or items under item-specific safeguards agreements remained in peaceful activities. Safeguards were also applied in the five nuclear-weapon states party to the NPT under voluntary offer agreements, with the IAEA concluding that nuclear materials in selected facilities remained in peaceful activities or were withdrawn as specified in the agreements.
Massimo Aparo emphasized the significant effort involved in drawing safeguards conclusions for numerous states. To address challenges in international nuclear safeguards implementation, the agency continued supporting state and regional authorities responsible for safeguards (SRAs) and state systems for nuclear material control (SSACs) through extensive training in 2024.
Furthermore, the IAEA launched a new cycle of the Comprehensive Capacity-Building Initiative for SSACs and SRAs (COMPASS) in 2024, targeting Bangladesh, Bolivia, Cameroon, and Ghana. Initiated in 2020, COMPASS offers tailored assistance to meet specific safeguards needs of states.