Mr Attaf meets with officials at UN Office in Vienna

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad, Ahmed Attaf held bilateral talks with several officials at the headquarters of the United Nations Office in Vienna, kicking off his working visit to Austria.

In this respect, Attaf had discussions with the Acting Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Dennis Thatchaichawalit, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Mariano Grossi, and the Executive Secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), Robert Floyd.

The talks with the responsible of UNODC, which took place in the presence of the heads of departments of this UN body, focused on the state of cooperation relations in combating drugs, organized crime and the scourge of terrorism, in addition to subjects related to the recovery of looted funds.

The minister underscored the need to ramp up efforts so as to address the challenges related to narcotics and their links with organized crime and the financing of terrorism.

In this regard, he noted Algeria's considerable efforts in combating attempts to flood the country with cannabis, the most widespread narcotic in Africa, according to successive global reports of the UNODC.

During his meeting with IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, the Minister of Foreign Affairs affirmed "Algeria's unwavering support for the Agency and the efforts of its Director General to back member countries, enabling them to benefit from nuclear energy and nuclear technology for peaceful purposes, as part of its rotating presidency.

The two parties discussed the state of cooperation between Algeria and IAEA regarding the peaceful use of nuclear energy and nuclear applications within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

They also examined the prospects of boosting this cooperation, particularly as part of implementing the framework agreement signed in November 2023 in line with the instructions of the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, so as to speed up the development of the use of nuclear applications in the health sector, especially the fight against cancer, nuclear medicine and radiotherapy.

Attaf also met with CTBTO's Executive Secretary, Algeria's principled stance on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation issues inspired by its strict adherence to international law, having long suffered from the aftermath of French nuclear tests on Humans and the Environment.

In this respect, the minister affirmed Algeria's resolve to carry on backing this organization and the efforts of its Executive Secretary to accelerate the implementation of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.