Nonproliferation Case Study: The IAEA’s Investigation of Syria’s Nuclear Program
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Transcript of Nonproliferation Case Study: The IAEA’s Investigation of Syria’s Nuclear Program
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LLNL-PRES-486336 1This work performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract DE-AC52-
07NA27344.
Nonproliferation Case Study: The IAEA’s Investigation of Syria’s Nuclear ProgramJonathan EssnerGlobal Security Principal DirectorateLawrence Livermore National Laboratory Monterey Institute of International
StudiesJune 7, 2012
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NPT member since treaty entered into force in 1970 Comprehensive safeguards agreement – INFCIRC/407 – in force
since 1992 One facility declared to IAEA: miniature neutron source reactor
near Damascus• China supplied• IAEA inspects annually under “routine” inspection• Activity in recent years prompted IAEA to adjust inspection schedule
No additional protocol in force Syria recipient of IAEA Technical Cooperation IAEA not previously aware of Al Kibar (“Dair Alzour”) or other
possible undeclared activity Board finds Syria in non-compliance with its safeguards
agreement on 9 June 2011 (GOV/2011/41)
Syria’s nonproliferation bona fides, declared nuclear activity and compliance issues
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September 2007: media sources alleged that a nuclear reactor secretly under construction had been attacked and destroyed by Israel
IAEA urged states with information to come forward; Syria did not, and neither did other parties for the next seven months
ISIS published detailed analyses in late October 2007 In April 2008, U.S. released satellite images and ground
photographs of a gas-graphite reactor and implicated DPRK as the supplier
In June 2008, Syria allowed IAEA to visit the site The DG has requested access to other suspect sites and all
available information so that the Agency can complete its assessment; the DG has not made a case for a special inspection
What is this Al Kibar you speak of?
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Al Kibar in August 2007, pre-strike (source: Digital Globe/ISIS)
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Closer view (same image)
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Ground-level photo (source: ODNI briefing)
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Al Kibar in September 2007, post-strike (source: ODNI briefing)
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Al Kibar in October 2007, post-strike (source: Digital Globe/ISIS)
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Closer view (same image)
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January 2008 (source: Digital Globe/New York Times)
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A deliberate effort to disguise? Do you see what I see? (source: armscontrolwonk.com)
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There are indications that Syria attempted to sanitize Al Kibar (source: GOV/2011/30)
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April 24, 2008: ODNI releases video and transcript alleging reactor construction
“Background Briefing with Senior U.S. Officials on Syria’s Covert Nuclear
Reactor and North Korea’s Involvement”
http://atlantis2.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4043947n OR Google: Syria covert nuclear CBS
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A jog through the IAEA’s investigation
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In the last 10 years, the DG has reported to the Board on investigations in Libya, South Korea, Egypt, North Korea and Syria. He currently reports to the Board on Iran• Not necessarily cases of non-compliance, however
The DG typically presents a report to the Board at each BOG session (4 reports/year) until outstanding issues are addressed to the DG’s satisfaction
The Board provides direction with respect to follow up reports, sometimes asking for a report at the next BOG report, sometimes asking the DG to keep the Board informed, sometime asking the DG to report as appropriate
DG reports on investigations do not follow consistent format; usually include a description of events, verification efforts, possibly findings and a summary
Occasionally a DG Reports includes a reference to Art. XII (c) of the Statute; these reports are linked directly to non-compliance and trigger a report to the UNSC• “The inspectors shall report any non-compliance to the Director General who shall
thereupon transmit the report to the Board of Governors”
Following description of IAEA investigation based on DG reports and open sources
The IAEA keeps the Board informed of investigations through distribution of DG reports
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Syria agreed to and provided access to Al Kibar, including all buildings on site, and allowed environmental sampling (June 2008)
During the visit and after, Syria did not provide: Documentation relevant to the destroyed or surrounding
buildings Clarification about certain procurement activities (graphite
and barium sulphate) Information related to activities at and access to three
locations of interest ES at Al Kibar indicated presence of anthropogenic uranium
particles Particles found are not of a type included in Syria’s
declared material inventory
The IAEA’s investigation at Al Kibar started four years ago
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TIMEOUT: Environmental Sampling
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After first visit, Syria rejected additional access requests until the environmental sampling results were in
Syria repeatedly claimed that uranium particles could have come from Israeli munitions IAEA investigated, including requesting information from Israel IAEA reports that this is not likely
Syria has attempted to shield inquiries into Al Kibar and elsewhere, citing that the locations are military-related and therefore sensitive The IAEA has stated that this “places no limitation on Agency access to
information, activities or locations simply because they may be military related”
DG has reiterated requests to access Al Kibar and other locations, procurement information in reports to Board; Syria has not complied
Syria has attempted repeatedly to stall or block the IAEA’s investigation
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IAEA informs Syria of discovery of anthropogenic natural uranium particles at MNSR during routine inspection in 2008 Particles found are not of a type included in Syria’s declared
material inventory ES does not support Syria claim that MNSR uranium
particles were due to contamination of “standard reference materials” or a “shielded transport containers”
Syria shares other possible explanations, including domestically produced yellowcake and small quantities of imported or domestically produced undeclared commercial uranyl nitrate.
DG states link between MNSR and Al Kibar uranium compounds needs further analysis
While pressing on Al Kibar, IAEA has investigated inconsistencies at only declared facility
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Syria informed IAEA of conversion activities involving “tens of grams” of nuclear material in 2004 at MNSR
Presented ~1kg of yellowcake to IAEA said to have been made at Homs and small quantities of uranyl nitrate powders and solutions
Provided access to samples irradiated in the MNSR
Provided updated design information and inventory change reports for newly declared material
Investigation demonstrates strengths of safeguards tools, particularly ES
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IAEA reports details of plan of action to resolve Agency questions and to address access requests to Homs. Plan includes actions related to:
the amount and types of nuclear material used in the preparation of uranyl nitrate, the irradiation activities at the MNSR and the processes used;
scientific publications by the AECS that indicate uranium conversion experiments different from those declared by Syria to have occurred at the MNSR;
information indicating the presence of nuclear material under the control of the Waste Management Department of the AECS but not part of Syria’s declared inventory; and
access to Homs for the purpose of determining the extent of any uranium processing activities and nuclear material at that location.
Action plan does not include Al Kibar
In September 2010, IAEA and Syria agree to “action plan”
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Syrian cooperation has addressed MNSR-related concerns but Al Kibar remains a problem The IAEA and Syria worked to address all issues in the
action plan, including coordinating a visit to Homs Phosphoric Acid Pilot Plant
The May 2011 DG report states that the Agency will return to the routine implementation of safeguards at the MNSR
However, the May 2011 DG report also states that the Agency “concludes that the destroyed building was very likely a nuclear reactor and should have been declared by Syria…”
Prior to June Board meeting, Syria agreed in writing to cooperate with the IAEA’s investigation; very Iran-like
The Board of Governors picked up the issue in the June Board meeting, resulting in a resolution that found Syria in non-compliance. Surprised?
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The June 2011 Board finds Syria in non-compliance with its safeguards agreement GOV/2011/41: Resolution passed
with 17 countries voting in support (11 abstentions) “Finds…Syria’s undeclared
construction of a nuclear reactor…and failure to provide design information…constitute non-compliance..”
“Decides to report…Syria’s non-compliance…to all Members of the Agency and to the Security Council and to the General Assembly…”
Syrian Ambassador to Austria, Bassam al-Sabbagh (source: AP)
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The IAEA presented its case before the Security Council Difficult to estimate measures Security Council
may take Russia and China voted against the Board resolution;
should expect same as Security Council members? UNSC has been “concerned” about Syria for domestic
issues; U.S. attempting to keep nuclear and domestic problems separate
UNSC heard briefing by IAEA in a closed-door session in July 2011
IAEA delegation traveled to Damascus in October 2011 to advance Agency’s verification mission; no progress to report
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Thank You