International

That Mohammed El-Baradei has today received the Nobel Prize for Peace can, according to SP Member of Parliament Krista van Velzen, at the very least be called curious. "It is certainly to be welcomed that he, as head of the UN's International Atomic Energy Authority, repeatedly called for a complete ban on nuclear weapons. Yet the same organisation has, in addition to opposing nuclear armaments, another central task, the promotion of nuclear energy, which creates its own problems," Ms Van Velzen commented.

"All of the countries which have recently developed nuclear weapons, such as India, Pakistan, and before that Israel, did it with the aid of 'peaceful' nuclear technology. The famous atom-spy Qadeer Khan smuggled Dutch 'peaceful' nuclear technology into Pakistan, and the Pakistanis were then able swiftly to develop their own nuclear weapons."

"The IAEA is at the present time rather like an organisation which promotes both cleaner air and increased car-use. I hope that the presentation of the Nobel Prize will lead to a political discussion of the urgently needed reform of the IAEA. The world-wide promotion of the use of nuclear energy should of course not be amongst the United Nations' tasks.”