Comparison of the Obligations Contained in Voluntary Offer Safeguards Agreements of Nuclear Weapon States Party to the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons

All five Nuclear Weapon State (NWS) Party to the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons(NPT) have concluded and brought into force a safeguards agreement and additional protocol with the InternationalAtomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Each of these agreements share similar obligations, as well as contain somesafeguards obligations that mirror those assumed by Non-Nuclear Weapon State (NNWS) Parties to the NPT. Whilethe differences between the safeguards obligations of NWS and NNWS are largely understood, the nuances betweenthe safeguards obligations assumed by each NWS are not widely understood. This paper compares and contrasts theobligations contained in each of the NWS safeguards agreements.