Nuclear Safeguards and Security

Safeguards are activities by which the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in accordance with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), can verify the compliance of a State with its international commitments to use nuclear programmes only for peaceful purposes. In order to implement safeguards efficiently and effectively, the IAEA needs to deploy ‘State-of-the-Art’ tools, techniques, methodologies and expertise. As the IAEA has no dedicated budget for R&D, support from States is required in this regard.

Germany provides R&D, training and consultancy support through the German Member State Support Programme. On behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN), IFN-2 is in charge of the scientific coordination of this programme, which typically includes about 25 joint projects with the IAEA. At the same time, IFN-2 is also the principal investigator of many of these projects. In this line, IFN-2 carries out R&D activities in the following areas: Nuclear reference particles and analytics, geospatial information analysis, mathematical models and quantitative methods, containment & surveillance systems, as well as verification concepts.

Education and training are also part of the nuclear safeguards and security activities at IFN-2, including contributing to the Specializing Safeguards Master at Politecnico di Milano, Italy.

Finally, national and international advisory services and committee work is aimed at strengthening these activities. Such committees and organizations include, inter alia, the European Safeguards Research and Development Association (ESARDA), and the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management (INMM).