Towards an Integrated Safeguards System

An important challenge facing the IAEA is how to evolve its current system of safeguards to integrate the new safeguards strengthening measures which stem from the Model Additional Protocol. This paper explains the basic idea behind \"Integrated Safeguards\" and provides a distillation of the main concepts which have been put forward and discussed to date within the international safeguards community. Consideration is given to the idea of the IAEA performing less direct inspection on materials of lower strategic importance, coupled with increased co-operation with, and quality assurance of State and Regional Systems of Accountancy and Control. The paper concludes with a discussion of how the current Safeguards Criteria may evolve with the development of guidelines for integrated safeguards which focus more on the \"entire State\".