For the last fifty years, Egypt has played a leading role at the United Nations, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and other relevant international fora to promote general and complete disarmament. In this vein, and as nuclear weapons pose the greatest threat to international peace and security, Egypt has accorded special attention to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), it being the cornerstone of the global non-proliferation regime. Furthermore, Egypt has always sought to advance a comprehensive and balanced approach to the three main pillars of NPT, namely disarmament, non-proliferation, and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
As a strong believer and adherent to the letter and spirit of NPT and its objectives, Egypt was among the prime signatories of the Treaty in 1968, ratified it in 1981, and has ever since assumed a pivotal role in promoting universal adherence to the Treaty and the implementation of Treaty-based nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation commitments. Egypt has also been a strong advocate for the protection of the rights of the developing countries to unhindered access to the peaceful uses of nuclear technology. In 1974, Egypt co-launched an initiative- which was then adopted by the UN General Assembly- to establish a zone free of nuclear weapons in the Middle East. This initiative was then developed, in April 18, 1990, through the introduction of a second, more comprehensive initiative by President Hosni Mubarak, calling for the elimination of all weapons of mass destruction from the Middle East. This initiative called for the prohibition of all weapons of mass destruction in the region and the universal adherence to NPT, without exception, via equal and reciprocal commitments by all regional states.
While strengthening the three main pillars of NPT remains central to reviewing Treaty implementation, taking concrete actions towards the implementation of the Resolution on the Middle East, adopted by the 1995 NPT Review Conference, and which called on all regional states, which had not done so, to accede to the NPT and place their nuclear facilities under IAEA supervision, as well as for a WMD free-zone in the region, is central to ensuring the viability of the Treaty in global and regional contexts. This Resolution, without any doubt, was and continues to be an integral part of the indefinite extension package of NPT in 1995, without which the indefinite extension of the Treaty would have never been achieved. Egypt looks forward to initiating concrete and practical steps towards the implementation of the Middle East Resolution in the coming period, including through the convening of an International Conference on an internationally and effectively verifiable treaty for the establishment of a nuclear weapon free zone in the region".
The present Director General of the IAEA is the Egyptian diplomat Dr. Mohamed Elbaradei who in 2005 won- along with the IAEA- the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to promote international peace and security. Egypt also holds an elected seat at the IAEA Board of Governors.
Egypt is now in the process of re-launching its peaceful nuclear power program, to address the rising domestic demand for electricity. The Egyptian nuclear program is operated under the Ministry of Electricity and Energy.