UN Nuclear Agency to Meet on Japan Crisis

The Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will convene a meeting at its headquarters in Vienna on Monday to brief UN member states on the nuclear emergency in Japan, UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said here on Friday.

"Director General Yukiya Amano will brief member states on the nuclear emergency in Japan following his current trip to the country," Nesirky said.

Amano, who visited Japan on Thursday, said earlier on Friday that "in situations such as this, it is extremely important that the general public, both in Japan and internationally, is kept fully and accurately informed about the situation."

In the wake of the March 11 catastrophic earthquake and tsunami which caused a nuclear emergency situation, Japan formally requested that the IAEA provide expert missions, and the agency is in discussions with authorities about the details.

Staff at the IAEA's incident and emergency center is in close contact with their Japanese counterparts to monitor the situation, and Amano said the agency can also offer technical support in such areas as radiation surveys, environmental sampling and medical support.