VIENNA, July 8: Nearly 90 countries including the the world’s largest nuclear powers agreed on Friday to close loopholes in an international pact on the protection of atomic materials against terrorists and saboteurs.

The United Nations nuclear watchdog said 89 countries at a conference in Vienna adopted changes to a 1979 treaty that will require states to boost security at nuclear sites and cooperate more to track down stolen or smuggled atomic materials.

The delegates tightened aspects of the 1979 Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM) to match “the current level of the threats posed by nuclear terrorism,” according to the chairman of the Vienna conference, Alec Blair.

The amended convention will make it “legally binding” on states to protect all nuclear facilities and materials, whether in use, storage or transport.

The original convention dealt with fissile materials only during international transportation.

The communique said the amended agreement would “provide for expanded cooperation between and among states regarding rapid measures to locate and recover stolen or smuggled nuclear material, mitigate any radiological consequences of sabotage, prevent and combat related offenses.”

A key change extends the convention’s existing rules for securing international shipments to cover nuclear materials being shipped or stored within a country, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement.

“This new and stronger treaty is an important step towards greater nuclear security by combating, preventing, and ultimately punishing those who would engage in nuclear theft, sabotage or even terrorism,” IAEA head Mohamed ElBaradei said.

The changes to the treaty were proposed by the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan and 20 European states and backed by Russia and China.

The amendments require signatories to protect nuclear material by adopting proper legislation, ensuring that a competent regulatory body is chosen and taking any other appropriate measures.

The IAEA said the new rules will come into effect once they have been ratified by two-thirds of the 112 states that are parties to the original convention, a process that is expected to take several years.—AFP/Reuters