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Address causes of insecurity: ElBaradei

By Our Special Correspondent

MUMBAI, NOV. 16. The Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohamed ElBaradei, yesterday called upon the international community to address the causes of insecurity that provided incentives to acquire nuclear weapons. "Nuclear arms control and global security go hand in hand; the two topics must be addressed in parallel," said Dr. ElBaradei, pointing out that regions facing a security deficit were also those where proliferation concerns existed the most. The IAEA chief was inaugurating the INSAC 2004, the 15th annual conference of the Indian Nuclear Society.

Dr. ElBaradei called for a "concrete dialogue" on the regional security deficits to develop and establish a system of collective security that did not depend on nuclear weapons. He called for immediate, meaningful steps towards nuclear disarmament. Until such an alternative collective security was established, reliance by some on nuclear weapons would continue for their perceived deterrent effect.

He said India had chosen to pursue nuclear weapons but hoped that the country would continue to contribute its insights and ideas on how to move forward to strengthen regional and global security "so that future generations can enjoy a security system based on shared human values, and in which nuclear weapons have no place."

Dr. ElBaradei said that IAEA could demonstrate in Iraq, Libya and Iran on how effective its verification could be, provided it got the authority and access to relevant information. Other factors, including new verification tools and approaches such as satellite imagery and environmental sampling, had made the agency better equipped. But what was needed was the removal of causes of proliferation.

Dr. R. Chidambaram, president of the Indian Nuclear Society said the conference would discuss the use of nuclear technology for meeting

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Address causes of insecurity: ElBaradei

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