IAEA STAFFING: AMCIT OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS

UNCLAS UNVIE VIENNA 000148 SENSITIVE SIPDIS FOR T, IO/T, IO/MPR, AND ISN DOE FOR NA-20, NA-24, NE-1, NE-6 NRC FOR OIP DOANE, HENDERSON, SCHWARTZMAN NSC STAFF FOR CONNERY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AORC KNNP IAEA SUBJECT: IAEA STAFFING: AMCIT OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS FOR CHANGE IN KEY JOBS REF: UNVIE 144 ¶1. (SBU) Introduction: Mission continues to monitor senior-level positions throughout the IAEA Secretariat with an eye toward placing well-qualified Americans in positions of interest. Following is a break-down of current and upcoming senior-level vacancies by department, indicating both opportunities for U.S. nationals, as well as positions of interest to implementation of U.S. policy, regardless of the incumbent's nationality. This report on prospective personnel shifts in middle management and professional functions at the IAEA complements septel, which will report on the top-level transition that may accompany the arrival of a new Director General. ¶2. (SBU) Department of Safeguards: It is an unwritten rule that as a nuclear weapons state the U.S. does not hold the Deputy Director General for Safeguards position. Likewise we do not hold the Director position in any of the three Safeguards Operations Divisions. Ops C director Kenji Murakami, responsible for all of Europe and Central Asia, will depart in summer 2009, leaving an important opening. This position should have been filled and confirmed at the March Board of Governors meeting but was held back pending resolution of the Director General selection process. We understand a Japanese national has the inside track, but Canada still hopes its applicant can get the job. Ops B Director Herman Nackaerts, leader of safeguards verification in Iran and the broader Middle East region, told Msnoff that he will leave the IAEA in the summer of 2012 when his current contract ends. Nackaerts indicated that he has no intention to stay with the IAEA, preferring to move back to Belgium and spend time with his grandchildren. AmCit Jill Cooley is the current Director for Safeguards Concepts and Planning (traditionally the senior U.S. safeguards position); the United States would not be considered for a further D-level position in Safeguards during her tenure. Mission closely follows the many Section Head positions within the Department of Safeguards. Section Head for the Tokyo Regional Office is currently being advertised and has been occupied by Americans in the past. The application deadline was April 3. Mission is aware of one U.S. applicant, but Mexican national Lauro Pedreaza, currently acting in the position, has the inside track. ¶3. (SBU) Department of Management: Below the Deputy Director General for Management position, U.S. citizens hold two of six Director-level positions within the department. These are Charles Havekost, Division of Information Technology, and Gary Eidet, Division of Budget and Finance. Due to the existing high-level representation in this Department, a U.S. citizen will not be considered for a further D-level position in Management unless and until one of these two leaves. There are currently two Section Head vacancies in the Division of Public Information. Current Section Head for Media and Outreach, U.S. citizen Melissa Fleming, will depart this year and her position is being advertised. The position of her counterpart for the News and Information Section is also being advertised. Mission is aware of several U.S. citizen applicants -- one of whom is said to have the inside track -- and will follow these candidacies closely. ¶4. (SBU) Department of Nuclear Safety and Security: This department writes draft safety and security legislation and draft regulatory and security guidance documents that are being used by Member States to create their nuclear programs. The Department performs safety and security peer reviews of facilities and provides recommendations for improvements. The Department also performs an enormous amount of training on all areas of safety and security. U.S. staffing here can have a direct and almost immediate influence on safety and security world-wide. Currently, of the 24 management positions in the department, the U.S. holds only one, a P-5 position as head of the Incident and Emergency Center. This means that there are no U.S. managers anywhere in the safety and security technical areas. Total U.S. staffing in the Department is 17, but a majority of these personnel are Cost Free Experts in the office of security, paid for by the U.S. In the Division of Nuclear Installation Safety, the post of Section Head, Policy and Program Support, will be advertised in the coming months. The position of Section Head, Safety Assessment, is expected to become vacant in early 2010. ¶5. (SBU) Department of Nuclear Energy: The post of Director, Division of Nuclear Power is currently vacant, and Mission is aware of one well-qualified U.S. candidate in the first round of interviews. Within this Division are two Section Head positions. In January 2009, U.S. citizen Russell Clark retired as Section Head for Nuclear Power Engineering, and this position is currently vacant. Mission is aware of five U.S. applicants to the position, for which applications closed on March 20. Section Head, Nuclear Power Technology Development, is U.S. citizen Atambir Rao, who is expected to retire within the next year. ¶6. (SBU) Department of Technical Cooperation: Mission is unaware of upcoming D-level vacancies within the TC Department. A Section Head position for one of the four regional divisions will become vacant in early 2010. ¶7. (SBU) Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications: Mission is unaware of upcoming D-level vacancies within the Nuclear Sciences and Applications Department. Section Head positions for the Section of Nuclear Data and Physics Section are expected to become vacant in early 2009 and late 2010, respectively. Current Representation -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Excluding about forty U.S.-funded Cost Free Experts (CFE) and Junior Professionals, U.S. representation at the IAEA held at 11.7 percent as of March 13, 2009, with U.S. citizens holding 87 of 745 positions subject to geographical distribution. Two American Cost Free Experts were recently awarded Staff contracts by the IAEA: Anne Starz, Technical Head, Infrastructure and Planning, Department of Nuclear Energy, P-5. Richard McCullough, Safeguards Analyst, Division of Concepts and Planning, Department of Safeguards, P-4. Comment -------------- ¶9. (SBU) As we look at increasing U.S. representation across the IAEA, the USG might take some tips from the French. In the Safeguards Department alone, France has strategically placed well qualified individuals with strong, broad nuclear nonproliferation backgrounds in key slots with influence: Frederic Claude, Special Advisor, Office of the DDG Malek Derrough, Senior Analyst, Operations B (Iran) Jean Maurice Crete, Section Head for Training, Concepts and Planning Eric Pujol, Technical Secretary to SAGSI, SGCP Jacques Baute, Director, Division for Information Management French nationals are also a significant presence among management positions in the Safety and Security Department. ¶10. (SBU) DoE's Next Generation Safeguards Initiative will be an important step in the direction of deepening the U.S. recruitment pool for critical safeguards positions. In addition, as reftel on the Office of Nuclear Security budget states, the IAEA's plan to move more of the security office's operations under the IAEA's regular budget would convert CFE positions to permanent staff, an estimated 49 Professional and General Services staff if the 2010-2011 budgets were approved in full. It is vital that the U.S. compete for these permanent positions in order to maintain the influence we have over the IAEA's nucelar security mission. SCHULTE