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

564 Pages·1997·2.22 MB·English

by  David Fischer

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