50th anniversary of the International Atomic Energy Agency
17.09.2007
Opening Speech
by
Dr. Ursula Plassnik
Federal Minister of European and International Affairs
Sehr geehrter Herr Bundespräsident,
Mr. Director-General, Excellencies,
distinguished Colleagues Ministers and Ambassadors,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to the Vienna Konzerthaus to jointly celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Atomic Energy Agency. I think it is on behalf of all of you if I first thank the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and its conductor Maestro Günter Neuhold for providing today’s birthday music.
We are meeting here tonight at the very place the IAEA held its first ever General Conference in 1957.
The Konzerthaus is the best symbol for what Austria and Austria’s capital offer to the world, to visitors and to the many expatriates working in the international organisations here in Vienna.
It is not only the logistical and technical infrastructure the Government of Austria and the City of Vienna provide to these international organisations. We also believe that the high quality of life and sound environment with ample opportunities for leisure and culture are equally important to make the staff members of these organisations enjoy there stay and feel at home.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As much as we Austrians offer a friendly and welcoming environment we also know how much we owe to the international community.
Choosing Vienna as seat of the IAEA in 1957 - only a year after the Hungarian Uprising had put Central Europe in the focus of a rapidly chilling political climate - was an act of courage. Austria herself had just regained her full sovereignty in 1955.
Hosting such an important institution had an immensely positive effect on the city, contributing to her revitalisation as a centre of dialogue and a place for international gatherings and multilateral diplomacy. Vienna has since grown into a truly international capital.
Today, the IAEA is the largest single international organisation we have the pleasure of hosting in Vienna. With a staff of more than 2000 and a wide scope of action, the IAEA has become a backbone of what we consider the "human security hub" Vienna.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Who would have thought 50 years back that the organization would develop in such a manner?
The Agency’s importance grew as the increasing number of nuclear power plants posed a growing safety challenge and as the danger of proliferation of nuclear weapons became an ever more imminent challenge to international peace and security. The IAEA became an essential pillar of our common quest for a more secure and safer world. Its reputation built up progressively to become known also to a larger public as the world’s “nuclear watchdog”.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
With your presence tonight you express your support for the Agency’s work and I thank you for that.
5 more nations were accepted this very morning by the General Conference as members of the IAEA, bringing the number to 149.
Let me thank the representatives of all the member states who contribute to the IAEA’s activities as diplomats, civil servants and policy makers - here in Vienna or in their respective capitals. Let me also express my appreciation to the dedicated staff of the IAEA - scientists, engineers, support staff, lawyers, managers, technicians - many of whom are here with us tonight. I would also like to greet their families and friends and hope they will find Vienna a good place to live and work in. And I promise: Jointly we will do our utmost to keep Vienna the hospitable place she always has been.
Allow me in particular to commend my friend, Director-General Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, for his work. He is a remarkable individual: he combines leadership, expertise, impartiality with clarity and diplomatic skills. In short: he is the right man at the right moment at the right place.
It is for merit that he - together with the Agency - was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005.
Let me also welcome Aida ElBaradei, whose wisdom, loyalty and subtlety we all admire.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Anniversaries are an occasion for retrospection but also an opportunity to look ahead into the future.
Today, we witness increasing international tensions regarding nuclear weapons programmes and nuclear programmes altogether, a frailty of the non-proliferation regime, a stagnation in disarmament, and an upsetting rise in military spending.
Our peoples expect from their leadership nothing less than a life in dignity, but above all - a life in freedom from want and in freedom from fear.
The opposite of fear is trust. And the road from fear to trust is steep and narrow. It takes substantial confidence-building efforts to make headway on this road.
It is with this in mind that I would specifically like to support the Agency’s patient and meticulous work to ensure that the Iranian nuclear program is of an exclusively peaceful nature.
This world is in dire need of confidence and a common sense of responsibility. I sincerely believe that we need to energetically revitalise and re-invigorate multilateralism - the joint search for solutions - as the core method in international politics, in particular in arms control and disarmament.
Let me give you one example: Today, we also met in the framework of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organisation to push for this treaty entering into force, ending once and for all the testing of ever deadlier nuclear weapons of mass destruction.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005, Mohamed ElBaradei stated - and I quote: "A durable peace is not a single achievement, but an environment, a process and a commitment." - end of quote.
If we all are committed and remain committed, we can change the climate, create the environment and push the processes for peace. I wish all of us the courage and determination to shoulder this task.
On behalf of the Austrian population and Government, I wish the Agency and its staff all the best for the decades to come.
Thank you and Happy Birthday!
