Syria granted the IAEA access to a nuclear facility in Deir ez-Zor
The Syrian government, on its own initiative, granted the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) access to a nuclear facility in the province of Deir ez-Zor in the country’s northeast.
According to al-Sheibani, Damascus independently initiated the inspectors’ access to the facility and seeks to deepen cooperation with the international nuclear regulator.
“Syria reaffirms that transparency is its own choice,” the foreign minister stated.
The IAEA noted that Grossi’s visit on August 17–18 marked the most significant step in cooperation between Syria and the agency to date. The inspectors visited the facility in Deir ez-Zor, as well as another site related to nuclear materials, the existence of which the Syrian authorities had reported to the agency.
The facility in Deir ez-Zor is known as Al-Kibar. It was destroyed by the Israeli military in 2007 because Israel believed a nuclear reactor was being built there.
For many years, the IAEA investigated the former Syrian regime’s activities surrounding this site. In 2011, the agency concluded that the destroyed structure was very likely an undeclared nuclear reactor.
Inspectors now have the opportunity to directly continue their examination of the facility and related materials.
According to Rafael Grossi, Syria has also notified the agency of nuclear materials that had not previously been declared. The IAEA must conduct a full inventory of these materials and place them under the agency’s standard safeguards.
Grossi noted that this involves several metric tons of nuclear material that could potentially be misused, so international oversight must ensure its safe storage.
The Syrian authorities, for their part, state that the materials will remain under the country’s control and may be used exclusively for peaceful purposes under IAEA supervision.
Granting access to the IAEA is an important step for the new Syrian government, which seeks to demonstrate transparency and resolve issues related to the nuclear legacy of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
This was stated by Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Sheibani during a joint press conference with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.
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