Nuclear: IAEA General Conference in Vienna from 26 to 30 September
VIENNA, 23 SEPTEMBER – In a moment of particular urgency for the international political situation, the 66th General Conference of the International Atomic Agency will be held this week in Vienna. Vienna will thus find itself at the center of world attention in the light of recent months and weeks, from the war of aggression by Russia against Ukraine with the issue of nuclear power plants and in particular of Zaporizhzhia, the Iranian dossier, the north one -Korean, the AUKUS trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the US for the Indo-Pacific region announced just a year ago, not to mention Vladimir Putin’s threats to use tactical or even strategic nuclear power.
Ambassador Cortese will chair the Conference
Italy, in the person of the Italian Permanent Representative to the Vienna International Organizations, Ambassador Alessandro Cortese, will chair the Conference. Italy’s position remains outlined alongside its Atlantic allies and within the framework of the common European position on the most topical dossiers. Yesterday, on the sidelines of the high-level week of the 77th General Assembly, the foreign ministries of Italy, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, Ukraine, together with senior officials from Korea, Switzerland, the United States, and the EU High Representative , Josep Borrell, expressed “protection for post threats to the safety and security of nuclear post for peaceful purposes in Ukraine, which face and plant the risk of a nuclear accident”. The risks of a nuclear accident, they added, “will remain dangerously high as long as Russia is present in Zaporizhzhia”.
The IAEA Conference also sees a high profile participation of the “Italian System” – public institutions, research bodies, private companies – in the various sectors of development of nuclear technologies for peaceful uses. Italy has organized a rich program of events at a permanent stand where industry players such as Ansaldo, Enea, the Politecnico di Milano and the National Institute of Nuclear Physics will hold high-level seminars and presentations. (@OnuItalia)