A Disarming Diplomat

The new head of the IAEA, Yukiya Amano, steers the organization amid mounting nuclear threats worldwide

By TENG JIANQUN

As Yukiya Amano, a former Japanese diplomat, assumed office as director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on December 1, 2009, he did so by highlighting momentous challenges in a world fraught with the perils of nuclear proliferation.

There are many parallels between Amano and Mohamed ElBaradei. Not unlike his Egyptian predecessor, Amano is a former law student who had served with distinction in the diplomatic corps with an emphasis on arms control and disarmament.

ElBaradei is widely known for his ability to forge consent among differing—and often opposing—parties. Amano, on the other hand, is known more for his low-key tactics,with a cautious style characterizing his work.

During his 12 years in of fi ce, ElBaradei witnessed momentous events in a nucleararmed world, as Iraq, North Korea, Iran and Syria emerged as major flashpoints. Under ElBaradei’s watch, the IAEA became one of the busiest international organizations in the world.

But Amano’s strength as a diplomat has also proven pivotal against a background of international disarmament issues. In this role, he has greatly in fl uenced the Japanese Foreign Ministry—including its overall policies on disarmament and nuclear energy.

During his tenure as a diplomat, Amano also participated in negotiations extending the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1995 as well as negotiations on the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty in 1996 and the Biological Weapons Convention in 2001.Through these endeavors, Amano gained extensive experience in disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear energy policies.

The origins of the IAEA date back to December 1954, when the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling for an international institution devoted to the peaceful use of atomic energy. Nearly two years later in 1956, representatives of 82 member nations passed the IAEA Statute, aimed at safeguarding and supervising the peaceful use of nuclear energy worldwide.

In October of the following year, theIAEA went on to hold its first General Conference to announce its formal establishment. The agency’s Secretariat now boasts a staff of more than 2,200 from 90 countries around the world.

NEW ARMS: Yukiya AmanoAmano’s Priorities● Working for nuclear non-proliferation● Enhancing nuclear safety and security● Assisting member states in meeting their energy needs● Responding to concerns about climate change● Helping to ensure food security and clean water● Improving health care through the application of nuclear techniques(Source∶ www.iaea.org)

By the end of 2009, the IAEA had represented 150 member states. The body itself is comprised of a General Conference with representatives from each member state that meets annually, a Board and a Secretariat.

The board, meanwhile, is the agency’s decision-making body, and holds five meetings a year. According to the IAEA Statute,members of the board rotate every year, and are designated and elected by the general conference.

Since its establishment, the IAEA has been vigilant in safeguarding, supervising and implementing the peaceful use of nuclear energy. In particular, it has presided over the formulation of numerous vital international conventions on nuclear safety,radiation safety and waste management safety standards.

In 1984, China became an IAEA member state, and has since participated in the formulation of its international conventions.Now, it has evolved into one of the most important powers represented within the agency.

Amano now confronts many of the same issues that plagued his predecessor, and much of the international community is waiting to see what happens next.

Indeed, there are three crucial issues the IAEA and its leadership must face in an increasingly multi-polar world.

The first question is how the IAEA can properly handle its relations with major world and regional powers.

Unfortunately, this may not be all that easy—something that was clear when the IAEA itself was formed shortly after World War II.

In fact, at the time, some nations feared the agency would become a regime with which nuclear-armed states could maintain their atomic monopoly.

For decades, major powers have never ceased in their efforts at enhancing their roles in the IAEA’s decision-making processes.As director general, Amano must first employ his diplomatic skills with these nations properly and discreetly.

The most recent signi fi cant fl are up within the organization itself concerned the complex nature of ElBaradei’s re-election in 2005.

Initially, Washington strenuously objected to his re-election∶ ElBaradei had been a vocal opponent of the Bush administration on a series of issues—not limited to its blatantly false allegations of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

In the end, however, ElBaradei succeeded in securing a third-term, following backdoor diplomacy with U.S. of fi cials.

As a relatively loose international organization, the IAEA has little power to enforce its will on member states. No agreements or decisions can enter into being, that is,until after a compromise has been reached.The agency’s independence, moreover, has always been subject to the varying needs of the oft-competing member states.

For Amano, maintaining good relations with major countries in the world, such as the United States, Russia and China, as well as some regional powers while ensuring the agency’s independence is essential to his job.

The second challenge is how to address regional nuclear issues, while promoting non-proliferation. The alleged potential of Iran to acquire nuclear weapons, for one, has been a thorny issue.

After the IAEA brought it before the UN,UN Security Council member states passed a series of resolutions calling on Tehran to halt its uranium enrichment activities while imposing economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

But the result was far from satisfactory.Iran has always maintained its right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy and opposed as unfair the international community’s moves to take it away.

During the process, the IAEA served as an important platform for bargaining among relevant countries. Indeed, cooperation with the IAEA has been seen as a gauge to judge Iran’s—and other non-compliant nations’—progress in implementing UN resolutions.

The Iranian nuclear issue, among others,will remain in play during Amano’s tenure.How to make use of the IAEA’s resources to mitigate the Iranian nuclear issue still calls for careful thought and diplomacy. This begs the question as to whether Amano should stick to his predecessor’s methodology, or pursue another course of action.

The third challenge is how to adjust agency functions. The original plan by which the IAEA was founded dictated its fundamental task is to ensure nuclear technology is used solely for peaceful purposes. That is, the agency is not designed to regulate nuclear security in the military fi eld.

In fact, monitoring military nuclear applications is no easy task. Nations in possession of nuclear weapons will never accept the IAEA’s monitoring or security mechanisms.

Nevertheless, the current regional nuclear issues all bear military characteristics.North Korea, for instance, publicly conducted nuclear tests and declared its nuclear capability. Accordingly, some proposed the IAEA put military nuclear programs under its supervision as well.

This and many other decisions lie with Amano. While campaigning for the post of IAEA director general, he said he would steer the agency toward becoming a purely technical organization.

He pointed out that the IAEA should only be a platform to address technical problems—as opposed to an entity of diplomatic mediation.The head of the IAEA, he said, should work to be an implementer of decisions instead of a mediator of international disputes.

Upon taking his post, Amano criticized what he called a worldwide misperception of the IAEA as an agency dealing only with regional nuclear disputes.

Often forgotten, he said, is the basic fact that the IAEA is tasked with promoting the peaceful use of nuclear energy. To this end,Amano pledged greater efforts to help poor countries harness nuclear energy for civilian purposes.

Since its foundation from the ashes of World War II, there can be no question the IAEA is an important organization. And with the end of the Cold War, as its mandate has grown, so, too, has its value in terms of its ever-expanding role.

Whether Amano can breathe fresh air to the IAEA will hinge on his previous experience—not to mention his courage. Indeed,the maintenance of the international nuclear order—and, of course, world peace—depends on it. ■

The original plan by which the IAEA was founded dictated its fundamental task is to ensure nuclear technology is used solely for peaceful purposes.That is, the agency is not designed to regulate nuclear security in the military field