UNDERSTANDING STATES’ EXPERIENCE IN SAFEGUARDS:
CHALLENGES TO AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENTRY INTO FORCE AND IMPLEMENTATION

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), States and groups of States have long engaged in outreach and capacity building on safeguards with the goal of universality of comprehensive safeguards agreements (CSAs) and additional protocols (APs), and the amendment or recission of outdated small quantities protocols (SQPs). This outreach work entails working with countries under a wide range of circumstances that drive them towards taking action on safeguards and present unique challenges to them taking such action. In 2022‑2023, the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non‑Proliferation, in partnership with the Verification Research, Training and Information Centre, conducted a project with a view to identifying these drivers and challenges, the ways in which States mitigated these challenges and formulate recommendations for more effective outreach and capacity building activities to promote strong safeguards globally. Themes identified during the project include: the access to peaceful uses that strong safeguards facilitate; sentiments of national responsibility towards the international non‑proliferation regime that drive countries; the benefits of leveraging pre‑existing national and regional structures, such as intergovernmental committees and regional safeguards arrangements; the importance of raising awareness in national governments at all levels; the need for enhanced technical, legal and financial capacity building for effective implementation; and the challenges posed by political or geopolitical factors that affect countries and regions. The paper presents the findings of this study, as well as the recommendations informed by extensive interviews with Member States that have taken recent action on their CSAs, APs or SQPs and regional organisations focused on nuclear matters.