Hans Blix Biography

Becomes a department head in Sweden's Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Serves as a senior legal adviser on international law.

Takes responsibility for Sweden's international development cooperation.

Becomes Under-Secretary of State in the Foreign Ministry.

Appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs

Is appointed Sweden's Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Takes Cabinet responsibility for Swedish foreign policy.

Completes his service as Sweden's foreign minister.

Returns to international legal and nuclear policy work.

Personally makes repeated inspection visits to the Iraqi nuclear reactor Osiraq before its attempted destruction by the Iranians, in 1980

Participates prominently in Sweden's national nuclear power referendum debate.

Leads a Liberal campaign supporting retention of nuclear energy.

Appointed Director General of the IAEA

Is inaugurated as Director General of the IAEA.

Begins sixteen years leading the international nuclear agency.

The IAEA begins its Operational Safety Review Team programme for peer review of nuclear power plant operational safety.

Establishes the International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group to provide high-level advice on nuclear safety.

Concludes an IAEA mission to the Soviet Union after Chernobyl.

Promotes international exchange of information about the reactor accident.

Leads the Agency during its Board review of Chernobyl.

Supports stronger international cooperation in nuclear safety and notification.

The IAEA convenes an international post-accident review meeting where Soviet experts present information on Chernobyl.

Oversees adoption of the Early Notification Convention.

Oversees adoption of the Convention on Emergency Assistance.

The treaty creates rapid international reporting after nuclear accidents.

The treaty strengthens international help after nuclear or radiological emergencies.

The Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material enters into force.

The Joint Protocol linking the Vienna and Paris nuclear liability conventions is adopted.

International Codex standards adopt guidelines for controlling food contaminated by radionuclides after nuclear emergencies.

The IAEA and OECD Nuclear Energy Agency introduce the International Nuclear Event Scale for communicating event significance.

The discovery drives major efforts to strengthen international safeguards.

Leads the IAEA as inspectors uncover Iraq's clandestine nuclear programme.

The IAEA establishes the RADWASS programme to develop internationally agreed radioactive waste safety standards.

Oversees safeguards inspections after North Korea's agreement enters operation.

The Board strengthens safeguards by requiring earlier provision of design information for new or modified nuclear facilities.

The IAEA strengthens safeguards through expanded reporting of nuclear material, equipment, exports and imports.

Inspectors identify inconsistencies requiring further clarification and access.

The Board of Governors reaffirms the IAEA's right to conduct special inspections under comprehensive safeguards agreements.

Inspectors find no indication that the weapons programme remains active.

The IAEA begins Programme 93+2 to strengthen detection of undeclared nuclear material and activities.

Oversees IAEA verification of South Africa's former nuclear weapons programme.

North Korea announces its intention to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty during the safeguards crisis.

The Board finds North Korea in non-compliance after inspectors encounter unresolved safeguards inconsistencies.

Oversees removal of the final declared weapons-usable spent fuel from Iraq.

The operation advances elimination of Iraq's former nuclear weapons capability.

Reports to the Security Council on North Korean safeguards problems.

Warns about unresolved verification issues involving the DPRK.

The IAEA Board approves international Basic Safety Standards for protection against ionizing radiation.

The Convention on Nuclear Safety opens for signature following international negotiation under IAEA auspices.

A clean laboratory is completed at Seibersdorf for analysis of environmental samples used in strengthened safeguards.

The decision preserves the treaty framework supporting IAEA safeguards.

Leads the IAEA during indefinite extension of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

The Board endorses safeguards strengthening measures that can be implemented under existing legal authority.

The IAEA begins routine environmental sampling at declared nuclear facilities as a strengthened safeguards measure.

The Convention on Nuclear Safety enters into force, strengthening the international nuclear safety framework.

Leads the IAEA when the Board approves the Model Additional Protocol.

The new safeguards instrument expands access to information and locations.

UNMOVIC supervises the destruction of a small number of empty chemical rocket warheads, 50 liters of mustard gas that had been declared by Iraq and sealed by UNSCOM in 1998

UNMOVIC supervises the destruction of a small number of empty chemical rocket warheads, 50 liters of mustard gas that had been declared by Iraq and sealed by UNSCOM in 1998

Appointed Head of the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission

The nomination follows Security Council consultations on inspection leadership.

Kofi Annan recommends Blix as Executive Chairman of UNMOVIC.

The Security Council approves Blix's appointment.

He is asked to take up UNMOVIC responsibilities promptly.

Begins building the new Iraq inspection organization.

Takes up his duties as Executive Chairman of UNMOVIC.

Consults as sixteen UNMOVIC Commissioners are appointed.

The College provides advice and guidance to the Executive Chairman.

Submits the organizational plan for UNMOVIC.

Defines structures for inspection, analysis, training and verification.

Receives Security Council approval for UNMOVIC's organizational plan.

The Commission proceeds with recruitment and operational preparations.

Chairs the first session of the UNMOVIC College of Commissioners.

Commissioners review preparations for renewed Iraq monitoring.

Chairs the second meeting of UNMOVIC Commissioners.

The College reviews recruitment, training and inspection readiness.

Chairs the third session of the UNMOVIC College.

Commissioners assess preparations while Iraq remains closed to inspections.

Chairs the fourth session of UNMOVIC Commissioners.

Inspection planning continues despite the absence of access to Iraq.

Chairs the fifth session of the UNMOVIC College.

Commissioners review progress in training and monitoring preparations.

Chairs the sixth UNMOVIC Commissioners session.

The Commission continues readiness work for future inspections.

Chairs the seventh session of the UNMOVIC College.

Commissioners review the continuing Iraq disarmament mandate.

Hussein accepts the resolution on November 13 and inspectors returned to Iraq under the direction of UNMOVIC chairman Hans Blix and IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei

Chairs the eighth UNMOVIC Commissioners session.

The Commission reviews inspection readiness and unresolved Iraqi disarmament issues.

Chairs the ninth UNMOVIC Commissioners session.

Commissioners continue planning for possible renewed inspections.

Chairs the tenth regular session of UNMOVIC Commissioners.

The Commission assesses preparations as diplomatic pressure on Iraq increases.

UN Resolution 1441 gives Iraq "a final opportunity to comply with its disarmament obligations" and set up inspections by the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

UN Resolution 1441 gives Iraq "a final opportunity to comply with its disarmament obligations" and set up inspections by the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

The meeting focuses on rapidly changing preparations for Iraq inspections.

Chairs a special UNMOVIC Commissioners session.

Iraq is given a final opportunity to meet disarmament obligations.

Receives the strengthened inspection mandate created by Resolution 1441.

Arrives in Baghdad with Mohamed ElBaradei and an advance team.

Preparations begin for the return of weapons inspectors.

UNMOVIC inspections resume in Iraq after nearly four years.

Blix directs the renewed chemical, biological and missile verification effort.

Submits UNMOVIC's eleventh quarterly report to the Security Council.

Reports on preparations and the newly resumed inspection process.

Explains the early status of resumed inspections.

Briefs the Security Council on UNMOVIC's eleventh quarterly report.

Receives Iraq's declaration of its weapons programmes.

UNMOVIC analysts begin assessing the extensive submission.

Briefs the Council on a preliminary assessment of Iraq's declaration.

Identifies unresolved questions requiring documentation and inspection.

During the Iraq disarmament crisis before the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Blix is called back from retirement by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan to lead the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission in charge of monitoring Iraq

Hans Blix said in late January 2003 that Iraq had "not genuinely accepted United Nations resolutions demanding that it disarm"

The United Nations weapons inspectors report that they had found no indication that Iraq possessed nuclear weapons or an active program

Reviews access, interviews and unresolved disarmament questions.

Briefs the Security Council on the developing inspection process.

Reports Iraq has yet to demonstrate a "genuine acceptance" of United Nations weapons inspections

Says important Iraqi disarmament questions remain unresolved.

Provides the Council's sixty-day update on resumed inspections.

Reports Iraq has yet to demonstrate a "genuine acceptance" of United Nations weapons inspections

Reports Iraq has yet to demonstrate a "genuine acceptance" of United Nations weapons inspections

Reports again to the Security Council on Iraqi cooperation.

Notes improved access while outstanding disarmament issues remain.

Blix claims that "If Iraq had provided the necessary cooperation in 1991, the phase of disarmament -- under resolution 687 -- could have been short and a decade of sanctions could have been avoided"

Supervises the start of destruction of Iraq's Al Samoud 2 missiles.

UNMOVIC identifies the missile system as exceeding the permitted range.

Reports accelerated Iraqi initiatives but continuing unresolved disarmament questions.

Presents UNMOVIC's twelfth quarterly report to the Council.

The document identifies key remaining Iraqi disarmament tasks.

Submits UNMOVIC's draft work programme to the Security Council.

Withdraws UNMOVIC personnel from Iraq before the invasion.

Inspection operations end one day before armed action begins.

Explains remaining inspection tasks despite the withdrawal from Iraq.

Briefs the Security Council on UNMOVIC's draft work programme.

Gives his final Security Council briefing as UNMOVIC chairman.

States inspectors found no evidence of resumed prohibited weapons programmes.

Blix accuses the US and British Governments of dramatising the threat of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, in order to strengthen the case for the 2003 war against the regime of Saddam Hussein

Blix accuses the US and British Governments of dramatising the threat of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, in order to strengthen the case for the 2003 war against the regime of Saddam Hussein

Blix accuses the US and British Governments of dramatising the threat of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, in order to strengthen the case for the 2003 war against the regime of Saddam Hussein