IAEA supports Estonia in drafting a Nuclear Law

Following a cooperative arrangement between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Ministry of Climate of Estonia, the IAEA has initiated a programme of legislative assistance. It is to furnish the Baltic nation with support as it endeavours to develop a new law to facilitate the introduction of nuclear energy. The objective of the aforementioned legislative mission, which took place from the 13th to the 17th of January, was to enable in-depth dialogues with constituents of the Estonian Nuclear Energy Programme Implementation Body, in addition to other pertinent national stakeholders. The dialogues encompassed a range of international legal instruments, including those about nuclear safety, nuclear security, safeguards, and civil liability for nuclear damage – with particular emphasis on the Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage (CSC) convention – and other components of a comprehensive nuclear legal framework. The subject of discussion with the legislative working group was the comments provided by the IAEA following a 2024 revision of the draft law. These comments were assessed in the light of international legal instruments to which Estonia is a party or to which it may wish to accede and relevant IAEA standards and guidelines. The draft law should be submitted to the government in June 2026.