On 29 August, SIPRI hosted Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), for a roundtable discussion and international press conference.
The event was attended by one of Grossi’s predecessors, Dr Hans Blix, SIPRI Distinguished Associate Fellow; and Ambassador Rolf Ekéus, SIPRI Distinguished Associate Fellow and former Director of the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq. The Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affair’s (MFA) delegation was led by Ann-Sofie Nilsson, Department Head. Others in attendance included SIPRI Researchers, Senior IAEA Officials, Heads of Department from the Swedish MFA as well as the Director of the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority.
The closed roundtable focused on three topics: (a) nuclear safety and security, (b) non-proliferation, and (c) ecological disruption and insecurity. The meeting was a part of the IAEA’s official visit to Sweden and Rafael Grossi’s first visit to Sweden as Director General.
The visit to SIPRI was widely covered in the media by journalists from major outlets such as Reuters, AP, AFP, TV4, Dagens Nyheter, TT and Swedish Radio. These outlets all attended the press briefing organized on-site by SIPRI following the roundtable. Coverage included:
‘字幕：福島第1原発の処理水、有害ではない IAEA事務局長’ [Fukushima Daiichi treated water not harmful, IAEA Director General], AFP, 30 Aug. 2023.
‘Primeiros despejos de água de Fukushima não são nocivos, afirma AIEA’ [First Fukushima water dumps not harmful, says IAEA], AFP, 30 Aug. 2023.
‘IAEA-chefen om ny kärnkraft i Sverige: “Finansieringen viktig”’ [IAEA chief on new nuclear power in Sweden: “The financing is important”], Dagens Nyheter, 29 Aug. 2023.
Click here to read more about the IAEA Director General’s official visit to Sweden.
About SIPRI’s Weapons of Mass Destruction Programme
SIPRI’s Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Programme seeks to contribute to the understanding of trends and developments pertaining to nuclear, chemical and biological weapons. It considers their implications for an increasingly complex security landscape and seeks to identify approaches to address the risks and challenges WMD pose. To this end, the programme examines the political, institutional, legal and technical aspects of WMD governance, focusing on international efforts at arms control and disarmament, materials security and non-proliferation, and risk reduction.
Click here to read more about SIPRI’s WMD Programme.