IAEA Board of Governors
Agenda item 5b: Application of safeguards in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
4 March 2026
Statement delivered by Mr Mat Fox, Alternate Representative of Australia to the IAEA
Chair,
Australia appreciates the IAEA’s professional efforts to keep Board members informed of developments related to the DPRK’s nuclear program. The Agency’s factual and objective assessments remain essential to us all.
Australia continues to condemn in the strongest terms the DPRK’s ongoing pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and delivery systems. The DPRK’s continued advancement of its illegal nuclear weapons program is a clear violation of its obligations under multiple UN Security Council resolutions. Australia is deeply troubled by indications of ongoing efforts to expand the DPRK’s undeclared fissile material production capabilities, and reprocessing activities, as outlined in the Director General’s introductory statement.
We recall the international community’s firm opposition to the DPRK’s unilateral renunciation of its obligations following this Board’s finding of noncompliance with its safeguards agreement, its subsequent nuclear tests, and actions to cease all cooperation with the Agency. We note with appreciation the release of the second Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team report. Fact-based reports on the DPRK’s UN sanctions violations remain important to maintain international awareness of the DPRK’s persistent evasions of UN sanctions. We recall one Member State’s decision in 2024 to end the mandate of the UN Security Council’s Panel of Experts on DPRK after fourteen years of unanimous support an action which undermined the global non-proliferation regime and created critical expertise gaps we now seek to partly address through the MSMT.
Chair
Australia urges the DPRK to return to full compliance with its non-proliferation obligations and to cooperate with the IAEA for the full and effective implementation of comprehensive safeguards. We utterly reject any attempt by the DPRK, or others, to normalise its illegal pursuit of nuclear weapons. The DPRK cannot, and will never, have the status of a Nuclear Weapon State under the NPT. We urge the DPRK to take concrete steps towards the complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement of its nuclear weapons program and engage in meaningful dialogue and diplomacy, which provide the only path to achieving enduring peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Australia requests that the Director General continues to monitor and report on developments to the Board, as appropriate.
Thank you, Chair.