t M

MINISTER FOR

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

V, '

NEWS RELEASE

23 March 1984

VISIT BY IAEA DIRECTOR-GENERAL

The M inister for Foreign A ffa irs / Mr B i l l  Hayden/ M .P./ today   announced that the Director-General of the Intern ational Atomic Energy   Agency (IAEA)/ Dr Hans B lix / w ill v i s i t  Australia from 27 March to   4 A p ril.

Mr Hayden issued the in v ita tio n  to Dr B lix during his v i s i t  .

to Vienna in May 1983.

Mr Hayden said that Australia has substantial interests in the   IAEA which derives from the Agency's unique role in upholding the   international non-proliferation regime -  based on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation   Treaty CNPT). Agency safeguards and the NPT are two of the central elements   of A u stralia's existing nuclear safeguards arrangements.

Australia also contributes fin a n c ia lly  to the a c t iv it ie s  of the

IAEA designed to assist developing countries to benefit from the peaceful   applications of nuclear energy through the IAEA Technical Assistance and   Cooperation Fund as well as/ in our own region/ through the IAEA Regional   Cooperative Agreement.

Dr Blix has had a long involvement in the intern ational   consideration of disarmament and international humanitarian law and is   strongly committed to non-proliferation and an e ffe c tiv e  IAEA safeguards   system.

Mr Hayden said that Dr B l i x ' s v i s i t  w i l l provide A u s tra lia  with

the opportunity to discuss/ among other thin gs/ the role of in te rn a tio n a l  safeguards in nuclear n o n -p ro life ra tio n / the strength of the in te rn a tio n a l  n o n -p ro life ra tio n  regime/ disarmament and the role A u stralia can play in  contributing to these areas of in te rn a tio n a l concern. -

