Year
2017
Abstract
Complementary access (CA) is an important instrument in the IAEA Department of Safeguards’ toolkit for evaluatingthe completeness and correctness of States’ declarations. Information analysis, and, in particular, the collection andanalysis of open source information, plays a vital role in the CA process as it helps State Evaluation Groups to identifypotential locations for access and enhances the effectiveness of CA implementation. Moreover, open sources, ratherthan in-field activities, are frequently the main source of information for potential complementary access at locationswhere the IAEA does not normally implement routine safeguards inspections, such as uranium mines and concentrationplants, universities, research centers, industrial sites, and storage or transport facilities. To encourage the most efficientand effective use of the Department of Safeguards’ resources and potential development in this area, this paperexamines how open source information analysis activities can support and enhance the Department’s overall approachto complementary access. Four distinct but related phases of the complementary access process are considered: (1)identifying the need for a CA, (2) making the case to management that a CA is necessary, (3) detailed preparation toconduct CA field activity, and (4) analytical tasks after CA field activities have been conducted. We discuss the IAEA’scurrent open source information collection and analysis activities as they support each phase in the CA process, andoffer observations and recommendations for how these activities can further enhance the effectiveness and efficiency ofthe CA process.