VIENNA, AUSTRIA – U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman today discussed the need to further expand international cooperative work in safely expanding the use of nuclear energy as a clean and affordable energy source while strengthening nuclear nonproliferation in remarks he delivered to the 50th Annual International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna, Austria.

“As an international community, we must work together to globally expand clean, reliable, and affordable nuclear energy in ways that reduce proliferation risks, increase global energy security, and limit pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.  The decisions we make today in terms of both reliable energy supply and nuclear nonproliferation will have an affect for generations to come,” Secretary Bodman said.  “I also would like to congratulate the IAEA on its 50th anniversary.  As developing and developed countries turn to nuclear power as a key component of their energy mix, the IAEA plays an important role in safeguarding the peaceful use of nuclear energy and helping countries meet the highest standards of safety, security, and nonproliferation.”

To guide international efforts to expand nuclear power, Secretary Bodman highlighted the global vision of President Bush’s Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP), which seeks to work with international partners to promote the use of advanced nuclear energy systems in order to provide a reliable fuel source in an economically competitive basis worldwide.  Through GNEP, nations will develop enhanced nuclear safeguards in cooperation with the IAEA as an integral part of the development of advanced nuclear facilities.  Secretary Bodman cited the need for mutually beneficial partnerships with nations to ensure that appropriate investments are made to demonstrate technologies that recycle nuclear fuel, reduce waste, and provide developing nations reliable access to clean nuclear energy for electricity.

Secretary Bodman also highlighted the nonproliferation successes achieved internationally through the President’s Global Threat Reduction Initiative.  He stressed the need for all nations to redouble efforts to secure radioactive and radiological material and further expand cooperative work in nuclear nonproliferation.  Secretary Bodman encouraged compliance with international safeguards, the amended Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials and Facilities, and related requirements for nuclear safety and security.  He discussed the United States and Russia’s Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism which aims to secure nuclear materials and called on all nations to act decisively and responsibly to thwart terrorists bent on nuclear and radiological violence.

In addition to giving his speech in Vienna, Secretary Bodman met with IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei; Russian Rosatom Director Sergei Kiriyenko; Indian Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Dr. Anil Kakodkar; Japanese Cabinet Minister for Science and Technology Iwao Matsuda; French Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission Alain Bugat; and China’s Atomic Energy Authority Chairman Sun Qin. 

Joining Secretary Bodman in his official delegation are DOE Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Dennis Spurgeon and National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Deputy Administrator William Tobey.

The IAEA was formed within the United Nations (UN) system in 1957 as an outgrowth of President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s 1953 “Atoms for Peace” initiative.  The IAEA has 140 member states and is the world’s forum for nuclear, scientific, and technical cooperation, and the international inspectorate for safeguards required under the Treaty for the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).

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