Statement of India by Minister of State for External Affairs, Shri MJ Akbar at IAEA Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Security
His Excellency Mr. Yun Byung-se,Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea and President of the IAEA Ministerial Conference on Nuclear SecurityHis Excellency Mr. Yukiya Amano, Director General, IAEADistinguished Ministers,Excellencies,Ladies and Gentlemen I would like to commend the IAEA and Director General Amano for organizing the 2016 International Conference on Nuclear Security: Commitment and Actions.I would also like to reiterate at the outset India’s commitment to global nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Today, with India having taken a leadership position in the effort to combat climate change, India will expand its nuclear energy capacity from the current level of around 6 Giga Watts to over 60 Giga Watts.
Mr. President, few phrases in the language can wholly convey the magnitude of the potential danger of terrorists finding their way, while acting on their own or with the help of revanchist elements, to nuclear instruments. The sane World wants to prevent malignant actors from getting access tonuclear and radiological material and facilities. Recent developments show that terrorist use of WMD materials is not a theoretical concern.A breach of nuclear security could lead to unimaginable consequences. Our meeting is therefore critical, urgent and essential. It underlines the Agency’s central role in strengthening the global nuclear securityframework, in facilitating national efforts on nuclear security, in fostering effective international cooperation,in setting future priorities and in forging technical and policy guidance.This meeting must carry forward the legacy of the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) process.
Mr. President, Indiahas always held that nuclear security is the domain of national sovereignty but this national prerogative demandsnational responsibility. All States must assume this responsibility and should scrupulously abide by their respective international obligations.Responsible national actions and effective international cooperation should be pursued together to prevent non state actors and other malignant forces from threatening the lives of innocents on a mass scale, destabilizing regional stability and international peace.
Mr. President,India is party to all the 13 universal instruments accepted as benchmarks for a State’s commitments to combat international terrorism. India welcomes the entry into force of the 2005 Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials (CPPNM) this year.Alongside the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (ICSANT) and UN Security Council Resolution 1540, the Amended CPPNM would strengthenour globalnuclear security architecture and enhance international cooperation and coordination. As we continue efforts to achieve universal adherence and reporting to these instruments, we must not forget the urgent task of closing out negotiations on a Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism at the UN which has been under discussion since 1996. Such delay hints at a lack of collective will on an existentialist issue that has become the most serious threat to World peace since 1945.
The IAEA occupies a crucial space between the international legal foundation of nuclear security and the initiatives of Member States. India has been consistent in its support for the Agency. It must havepredictable and sufficient resourcesfor its nuclear security work. In April this year, India announced another contribution of US $ 1 million to IAEA’s Nuclear Security Fund.Indian experts have contributed constructively to the preparation of IAEA Nuclear Security Series documents as also the Nuclear Security Plans. Indian experts are contributing to capacity building in nuclear security through international, regional and national training courses, technical and consultancy meetings and also IAEA Coordinated Research Programs (CRPs).As a regular participant in the IAEA’s Incident & Trafficking Database (ITDB), we encourage active participation of all member states in this network for sharing of information on illicit trafficking and other unauthorized activities or events involving nuclear and radioactive material.
Mr. President, India is ready to provide more financial and human resources to this task, not least by setting an example. The security of nuclear and radiological material in India is constantly ensured through robust oversight by India’s Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB). IAEA’s peer review mechanisms like the Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) have acknowledged the strength of AERB’s regulatory practices and capabilities. The Nuclear Safety Regulatory Authority (NSRA) Bill has been proposed in order to give a statutory basis to our regulator.
India has adopted the provisions of the IAEA Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources.There are regulatory mechanismsin place to ensure safety and security of radiation sources from ‘cradle to grave’. An e-licensing platform (e-LORA)to facilitate end-to-end licensing of facilities using radiation sources has been successfully operationalised. Security of high activity sources during transport isassured by implementing an elaborate security plan,which includes continuous and real time tracking.To promote a coordinated multi-agency approach to dealing with the threat of individuals or group of individuals acquiring nuclear or radioactive material for malicious purposes, India established last year a Counter Nuclear Smuggling Team. A network of 23 Emergency Response Centers, spread across India has been developed for detecting and responding to any nuclear or radiological emergency, anywhere in the country.
We, in India, will continue to evolve technology against nuclear terrorism not only in terms of physical protection measuresbut also to guard against cyber intrusion and sabotage. We will also continue to maintain and enhance export controls, in particular intangible controls, to complement nuclear security measures. We invite the Agency to take the lead in promoting work on the technology dimension of nuclear security.
Mr. President, India has contributed to measures to minimize Highly Enriched Uranium use by removing the enriched uranium based fuel in its oldest research reactor, APSARA. With regard to separated plutonium, India is strictly observing the principle of "reprocess to reuse” whereby reprocessing of spent fuel and commissioning of fast reactors are being synchronized to preclude any build-up of a plutonium stockpile. This approach is both proliferation-resistant and nuclear security friendly.
India’s Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership (GCNEP) has been steadily strengthening its portfolio of programmes and activitieswith a particular focus on nuclear security and has conducted more than 30 international and regional programmes involving more than 300 participants from around 30 countries.The course content hasincluded important and emerging nuclear security topics such as insider threat, vulnerability assessment, transportation security, cyber security, detection and prevention and response to radiological threats. GCNEP has an MOU with the IAEA andother major partners and is openfor further such collaborations. We hope to have on-campus work start by mid-2017. India will also host in New Delhi in February 2017 the Implementation & Assessment Group (IAG) meeting of the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism (GICNT).
Mr. President, maintaining effective nuclear security globally will require continuous national effortsbackedby policy synergyand international cooperation fostered through the Agency. We hope that the outcome of this Ministerial Conference will reinforce the mandate of the Agency to enable it to perform its central role in strengthening the global nuclear security architecture. We know the extent of the critical danger. We must be equally clear about the depth, breadth and clarity of our response.We wish this Conference all success. [PIB Press release].
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