Cameron Connolly for Aljazaeera

Distrust and Suspicion: 

A Major Theme for the IAEA

by Cameron Connolly 

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), established in 1957, is an international organization that has the primary goal of promoting the peaceful use of nuclear energy. The IAEA is “the world’s center of cooperation in the nuclear field.” This agency is an integral part of the United Nation’s General Assembly, and works with its member states and multiple worldwide partners to foster peaceful and secure nuclear technologies. Since 2014, the IAEA has made substantial progress in the addition of member states, and as of 2019 it shares all 196 member states with the UN.

During the conference, the IAEA will hash out two of the largest issues that face society today in 2024. For the first topic that will be covered, the committee must maintain peace at the helm of a potential nuclear attack, and discuss the inhibition of the acquisition of nuclear weaponry by terrorist groups. This topic is surely shaping up to be an interesting one, as nuclear terrorism does not have forgiving impacts by any means. Regardless of whether these terrorists are simply expressing psychopathic behavior or are trying to exhibit altruism that show pro-social behavior among their “in-groups”, they are nevertheless on the verge of a massive acquisition of nuclear weapons from potential Middle Eastern sources.

Despite Bin Laden’s death, which only temporarily veiled the strength of al-Qaeda, there has been a large resurgence of al-Qaeda. The resurgence of this terrorist group is legitimate, as suggested by diplomatic documents and Islamic militant groups. Ever since the 1990s, al-Qaeda has tried to create nuclear weapons, and has sought to purchase stolen nuclear material and weapons from various countries. The unsecured technology of nuclear energy may be percolating into the wrong stream of terrorist consciousness.

Even if al-Qaeda can be suppressed, it would only be the first battle in the war against nuclear threats by terrorist groups. In India and Pakistan, there is word that four terrorist groups have recently stemmed from a parent terrorist network, which was none other than al-Qaeda. Even more troubling, these four offshoots of al-Qaeda are working as a very successful communication chain. They have been responsible for attacks on innocent people since late 2022. Halting further acquisition of nuclear technology by these terrorist groups will be a difficult task for the IAEA, and it will take days of meticulous work to come up with a plan to counter the imminent terrorist thirst for destruction.

As if these terrorists groups have not already placed the IAEA under enough pressure, the agency has had to keep the second topic of discussion during the conference classified for “security reasons”. This topic has been described as having “huge implications not only for the future of nuclear energy, but for the future of the IAEA.” A lot of buzz and speculation as to what this topic could be has been circulating rapidly, but its secrecy certainly should not overshadow the importance of terrorist suppression.