The Nobel Committee based in Norway has announced that the world's most prestigious award for peace will jointly be conferred this year to the International Atomic Energy Agency and its Director General, Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei.
The award is in recognition of the efforts of the IAEA and its Head in "preventing nuclear energy from being used for military purposes and in ensuring that nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is used in the safest possible way". The announcement was met by Dr. ElBaradei, who has led the international nuclear watchdog since 1997, with a mixture of gratitude, pride and hope.
At the same time, Dr. ElBaradei acknowledged the untiring efforts of the men and women who serve the Agency, and reaffirmed his commitment to the peaceful use of nuclear energy and a nuclear weapons-free world. He cited IAEA's basic credo: "Atoms for Peace" as his and the Agency's guiding beacon.
The monumental work of the IAEA was commended by the Nobel Committee as being of "incalculable importance", especially in this time of increasing threat from nuclear weapons use and the seeming political deadlock in disarmament efforts. The Director General was likewise cited for being an unafraid advocate of new measures to strengthen the regime of international peace and security.
Dr. ElBaradei and the IAEA are set to receive their award on 10 December in Oslo, Norway, on the occasion of the death anniversary of the award's founder, scientist Alfred Nobel.
