Rebuilding the Vienna Spirit through Russian-US Dialogue on Safeguards

The “Vienna spirit” of cooperation and compromise has long allowed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to carry out its work in nuclear safeguards, regardless of disagreements between the major nuclear powers. However, in recent years, the growing divergence between the United States and the Russian Federation has posed new challenges to this spirit.

In this regard, the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and the Center for Energy and Security Studies (CENESS) have released a report calling for increased cooperation between the United States and Russia to support and uphold the work of the IAEA. “The Future of IAEA Safeguards: Rebuilding the Vienna Spirit through Russian-U.S. Expert Dialogue” is a product of a two-year project launched by CENESS and NTI, bringing together leading experts from Russia and the United States to build mutual understanding of the political and technical challenges to fully implementing the IAEA’s safeguards mission and to build support for more productive cooperation and collaboration between the two countries in this area. The IAEA’s work in verifying safeguards agreements is key to upholding many international agreements, including the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

VCDNP Non-Resident Senior Fellow John Carlson and Open Nuclear Network Director Laura Rockwood participated in the project on the US side.

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