• Commentary
  • Research
  • Experts
  • Events
Carnegie China logoCarnegie lettermark logo
{
  "authors": [
    "Gregory L. Schulte"
  ],
  "type": "other",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [
    "Korean Peninsula"
  ],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "ctw",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "NPP",
  "programs": [
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "Middle East",
    "Syria",
    "East Asia",
    "North Korea"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Nuclear Policy",
    "Nuclear Energy"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

Other

Uncovering Syria's Covert Reactor

The current stalemate of the IAEA's investigation of undeclared nuclear activities in Syria is the responsibility of the Syrian government, which buried the remains of its covert nuclear reactor in 2008 and now seeks to bury the IAEA investigation.

Link Copied
By Gregory L. Schulte
Published on Jan 5, 2010

Summary

In June 2009, one year after the first and only inspector visit in Syria, the IAEA director general reported that the information provided by the country "does not adequately support its assertions about the nature of the site." In August, he reported that the IAEA's investigation was "severely impeded" by Syria's non-cooperation.

  • The IAEA must complete its investigation in order to verify the absence of other undeclared activities in Syria, and the country's regime must be dissuaded from renewing such nuclear pursuits.
     
  • This case is as much about North Korean proliferation as it is about Syrian violations. Exposing North Korean cooperation with Syria could help to disclose and disrupt North Korea's global network.
     
  • The IAEA Board of Governors should address the Syrian investigation and North Korean proliferation activities at its next meeting in March 2010, and the issues should also be taken up at the NPT Review Conference in May, and the Six-Party Talks on North Korea.
     
  • Newly-appointed IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano should pursue a special inspection of Syria. The IAEA Board should be ready to back him, including through a report to the UN Security Council if the country’s non-cooperation continues.
     
  • The European Union should condition future economic relations with Syria on its cooperation with the IAEA to demonstrate that non-compliance has real consequences.

About the Author
Ambassador Gregory L. Schulte was the U.S. permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency from July 2005 to June 2009. He is now a senior visiting fellow at the Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction at the National Defense University. This article reflects his personal views and not those of NDU or the U.S. government.

About the Author

Gregory L. Schulte

Gregory L. Schulte
Nuclear PolicyNuclear EnergyMiddle EastSyriaEast AsiaNorth Korea

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie China

  • An aerial view shows containers stacked at a port in Taicang, in eastern China's Jiangsu province on May 18, 2025.
    Commentary
    How to Predict China’s Economic Performance for 2025: A Sectoral Approach

    GDP growth means something fundamentally different in China than in most countries.

      Michael Pettis

  • People wave Chinese flags as the plane carrying Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives for a two-day state visit at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on April 14, 2025
    Article
    How Southeast Asia Sees Xi Jinping’s Regional Push Amid U.S.-China Tensions

    The Trump administration’s effort to reshape the global trading system and reset overseas security commitments is creating an historic inflection point.  Less clear is how far China will be able to capitalize on these dynamics.

      • +1

      Li Mingjiang, Le Hong Hiep, Ngeow Chow Bing, …

  • Article
    Northeast Asia Is for Deterrence and Southeast Asia Is (Mostly) for Freeriding: Appreciating Divergent East Asian Approaches to Order, Uncertainty, and Contestation

    Most Southeast Asian states behave as if the actions of their Northeast Asian neighbors and the Philippines will be sufficient to maintain a regional status quo from which they can benefit.

      Chong Ja Ian

  • Commentary
    Beyond the Putin-Kim Alliance: How Can the International Community Engage China to Contain Nuclear Risks Over the Korean Peninsula?

    Faced with an increase in strategic maneuvering by Moscow and Pyongyang, Beijing will not sit idly by and allow Putin and Kim to shape the security environment on its behalf.

      Tong Zhao

  • Collection
    China Through a Southeast Asian Lens

    A Q&A series where we ask scholars from Southeast Asia for their insights on China’s influence and relations with the region. 

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie China
Carnegie China logo, white
Keck Seng Tower133 Cecil Street #10-01ASingapore, 069535
  • Research
  • About
  • Experts
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie China
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.