Syria and IAEA Announce Major Breakthrough on Legacy Nuclear Issues

Syria and the International Atomic Energy Agency have achieved their most substantial progress yet in resolving nuclear safeguarding concerns tied to the Assad regime, according to Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani and IAEA director general Rafael Grossi.

Speaking on Tuesday at a press conference at Tishreen Palace in Damascus, officials concluded Mr Grossi’s two-day visit to Syria, which featured inspections of a site in Deir Ezzor alongside a second, undisclosed location containing recently identified nuclear material.

Mr Shibani stated that Syria proactively approached the IAEA to address these matters, driven by a commitment to complete transparency and regional security. For the first time in nearly two decades, Syria permitted access to a classified nuclear site located in the eastern region of Deir Ezzor, while also emphasizing its legal and sovereign right to utilize nuclear energy peacefully for health, energy, and water management purposes.

Previously, the Assad regime was reported to have kept nuclear material intended for the Al Kibar nuclear reactor project at a location designated as Site 99. Located in Deir Ezzor, the unfinished Al Kibar research facility was heavily damaged in a 2007 Israeli airstrike that halted the nation's nuclear ambitions.

“We are addressing the ousted regime’s legacy regarding nuclear activities, while the new Syria looks forward to co-operating with the international community on peaceful nuclear activities,” Mr Shibani remarked.

These developments could assist the IAEA in clarifying decades-old inquiries concerning Syria's former nuclear initiatives and accounting for associated nuclear materials. Mr Grossi noted that collaboration with the current Syrian government began a year and a half ago, noting that the nation has successfully restored its standing within the international community as a fully compliant participant in nuclear non-proliferation agreements.

“The minister affirmed that the Syrian Arab Republic exercises sovereign responsibility over all nuclear material on its territory, that the material remains in Syrian national custody, and that Syria will continue to perform its responsibilities in accordance with its international obligations and its national interests,” the IAEA stated.

The IAEA launched its investigation into undeclared Syrian nuclear operations in 2008 following intelligence regarding the Deir Ezzor facility, ultimately concluding in 2011 that the location functioned as a nuclear reactor and declaring Syria in non-compliance with its safeguarding duties.