On 29 August 2024, in Vienna, Ambassador Raimonds Oškalns submitted his credentials to the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Mariano Grossi, thereby becoming Resident Representative of Latvia to the IAEA.
The Ambassador welcomed the IAEA’s initiatives and projects that are being successfully implemented with the help of nuclear technologies. Raimonds Oškalns emphasized the importance of the IAEA’s presence at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant so that the international community would gain assurance in compliance with radiation safety requirements.
Ambassador Oškalns also underlined Latvia’s interest in a continued technical cooperation and discussed contribution by Latvian companies to nuclear safety.
Background information
The International Atomic Energy Agency is the main intergovernmental forum for scientific and technical cooperation in the nuclear realm. The Agency’s mission includes a responsible use of nuclear science and technology for peace and security to contribute to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The IAEA was established in 1957 and currently has 178 Member States. Latvia joined the organisation in 1997. The IAEA has a research laboratory in Seibersdorf (Austria) and a marine environment laboratory in Monaco.
The IAEA supports its Member States in achieving their social and economic objectives through the use of nuclear technologies in energy generation, medicine, food safety, and other fields. The IAEA also develops radiation safety standards and assists states with compliance. In order to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, the agency, through inspections, verifies the compliance of Member States with the Treaty on the non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the use of nuclear material for peaceful purposes only.
Once a year, all Member States meet in Vienna for the IAEA General Conference, which features discussions on non-proliferation measures, the use of nuclear technology for peaceful purposes, and technical cooperation. This year’s conference will take place from 16 to 20 September.
The IAEA motto is “Atoms for Peace and Development”.