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History of the International Atomic Energy Agency: the first forty years PDF

564 Pages·1997·2.22 MB·English
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IAEA_History.qxd 10.01.2003 11:01 Uhr Seite 1 HISTORY OF THE I NTERNATIONAL A TOMIC E Also available: NERGY A International Atomic Energy Agency: Personal Reflections GENCY (18 ✕ 24 cm; 311 pp.) The reflections are written by a group of distinguished scientists The First Forty Years and diplomats who were involved in the establishment or subsequent work of the IAEA. It represents a collection of by ‘essays’ which offer a complementary and personal view on David Fischer some of the topics considered in the full history. A fortieth anniversary publication ISBN 92–0–102397–9 IAEA_History.qxd 10.01.2003 11:01 Uhr Seite 2 The ‘temporary’ In 1979, the Austrian headquarters of Government and the IAEAin the City of Vienna the Grand Hotel, on completed construction the Ringstrasse in of the Vienna central Vienna. International Centre The Agency remained (VIC), next to the there for some Donaupark, which twenty years, until 1979. became the permanent home of the IAEAand other UN organizations. Austria generously made the buildings and facilities at the VIC available at the ‘peppercorn’ rent of one Austrian Schilling a year. IAEA_History.qxd 10.01.2003 11:01 Uhr Seite 2 The ‘temporary’ In 1979, the Austrian headquarters of Government and the IAEAin the City of Vienna the Grand Hotel, on completed construction the Ringstrasse in of the Vienna central Vienna. International Centre The Agency remained (VIC), next to the there for some Donaupark, which twenty years, until 1979. became the permanent home of the IAEAand other UN organizations. Austria generously made the buildings and facilities at the VIC available at the ‘peppercorn’ rent of one Austrian Schilling a year. HISTORY OF THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY The First Forty Years H I S T O RY O F T H E I N T E R N AT I O N A L AT O M I C E N E R G Y A G E N C Y T h e F i r s t F o r t y Ye a r s by D a v i d F i s c h e r VIC Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Fischer, David. History of the International Atomic Energy Agency : the first forty years / by David Fischer. — Vienna : The Agency,1997. p. ; 24 cm. “AFortieth Anniversary Publication.” ISBN 92–0–102397–9 Includes bibliographical references. 1. International Atomic Energy Agency—History. I. International Atomic Energy Agency. VICL 92-00172 © IAEA1997 Permission to reproduce or translate the information contained in this publication may be obtained by writing to: Division of Publications International Atomic Energy Agency Wagramerstrasse 5 P.O. Box 100 A-1400 Vienna Austria STI/PUB/1032 ISBN 92–0–102397–9 Printed by the IAEAin Austria September 1997 H I S T O R Y O F T H E I A E A PREFACE by the Director General of the IAEA There is a rich literature about the United Nations which includes analyses of the Charter and different phases and aspects of the organization’s work. There are also many personal recollections by individuals which add to the general store of knowledge on the UN. Less has been writtenabout the specialized organizations in the UN family. Yet many innovations in inter- national co-operation first emerged in such organizations and a close study of their statutes and records is often rewarding for the student of international affairs. However, official documents do not tell the whole story. Accounts by persons closely connected with such organizations help us to understand better how they function. Lawrence Scheinman’s The International Atomic Energy Agency and World Nuclear Order has so far been the only systematic study of the IAEA. It was therefore felt that it would be a valuable and inter- esting contribution to the celebration of the fortieth anniversary of the Agency to publish a history of the organization as seen by someone who was “present at the creation” and has been involved in much of its life. Professor William Potter, the Director of the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, kindly agreed that the Institute would join the IAEAin sponsoring the project and sharing its cost. The Institute commissioned Mr. David Fischer, who has been associated with the IAEAfor more than forty years, to write the history of the Agency. David Fischer took part in the negotiation of the IAEA’s Statute in 1954–1956 and served on the IAEA’s Preparatory Commission. From 1957 until 1981 he was the Agency’s Director and subsequently Assistant Director General for External Relations. In 1981 and 1982 he was Special Adviser to Director General Eklund and to myself. Since then he has served as a consultant to the IAEAon many occasions. David Fischer was greatly helped by an Editorial Advisory Committee comprising Mr. Munir Ahmed Khan (formerly Chairman of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and Chairman of the IAEABoard of Governors in 1986–1987), Professor Lawrence Scheinman (of the Monterey Institute of International Studies and formerly Deputy Director of the US Arms Control and Disarmament Agency) and Dr. Tadeusz Wojcik (Chairman of the Polish Nuclear Society and former chef de cabinet of the Director General of the IAEA). All three are closely related professionally, in different fields, to the P R E FA C E IAEA and served on the Advisory Committee in their personal capacities. Ambassador Roland Timerbaev, for a long time Resident Representative of the USSR to the IAEA, also read the draft manuscript of the History and pro- vided many invaluable insights. However, this book does not purport to express the views of the Advisory Committee or of the IAEAor its Member States. The responsibility for all statements is that of the author alone. The philosopher George Santayana once wrote that “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”. That risk is particularly high in an international organization with a rapid turnover of staff and of the representatives of the States that frame its policies. To understand the present character of the IAEAand its future potential, it is essential to know how and why the IAEA has become what it is today. The dry terms of the IAEA’s Statute and its records are not enough; the Agency has also been formed by experience, practice, style and tradition. It is hoped therefore that this book together with its companion piece — the reflections of persons who played a prominent part in the creation and development of the IAEA— will help to provide the needed historical perspective. I would like to thank most warmly all those who have contributed the time and effort put into commemorating the Agency’s fortieth birthday. I would particularly like to thank Mr. Munir Khan, who first suggested the idea of the History and the collection of essays. Hans Blix

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