Damascus: Syria welcomed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors' consensus adoption of a resolution closing outstanding issues related to the country's nuclear file and removing the matter from the board's agenda.
According to Anadolu Agency, the Syrian Foreign Ministry released a statement late Wednesday, highlighting that the decision 'closes a chapter that has lasted for years' and opens 'new prospects' for international cooperation on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and technology. The resolution was described as an 'important diplomatic and legal achievement for Syria,' reflecting the country's 'success in building consensus within the IAEA Board of Governors.'
The ministry noted that Damascus had adopted 'transparency, cooperation and respect for international obligations as a consistent approach since the country's liberation,' aiming to address the legacy left by the government of former President Bashar al-Assad.
On Wednesday, the IAEA Board of Governors decided to end the noncompliance finding on Syria's nuclear obligations after the completion of technical and legal requirements, as reported by the Syrian state television Alikhbariah.
In August, the head of the Syrian Atomic Energy Commission, Mudar al-Akaleh, indicated that Syria was moving toward closing the noncompliance file and expanding peaceful nuclear applications. He mentioned that the commission, in coordination with the Foreign Ministry, had been working to provide all necessary technical requirements to assess nuclear materials and waste linked to the former regime, in line with international safeguards and the IAEA's legal framework.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, speaking in Damascus on Aug. 18, announced the presence of 'several tons of nuclear materials' from the Assad era in Deir ez-Zor province, and noted that inspectors had been granted access to the site. An IAEA report circulated to member states and leaked to the media detailed agency inspectors' verification and investigative work at various sites in Syria in August.
The report highlighted that the Assad regime had failed to declare nuclear materials, facilities, and types of activities that should have been reported under Syria's comprehensive safeguards agreement with the NPT. On Monday, during the opening of a meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna, Grossi remarked on the 'historic breakthrough' after Syria's new administration provided the required information and allowed access to the Deir ez-Zor facility and other sites.