Rafael Grossi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rafael Grossi
Official portrait, 2020
6th Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency
Incumbent
Assumed office 3 December 2019
Preceded by	Yukiya Amano
Argentine Ambassador to Austria
In office 10 June 2013 – 29 November 2019
President	Cristina Fernández de Kirchner Mauricio Macri
Preceded by	Eugenio María Curia
Succeeded by	Gustavo Eduardo Ainchil
Deputy Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency
In office January 2010 – 9 June 2013
President	Yukiya Amano
Personal details
Born	Rafael Mariano Grossi (1961-01-29) 29 January 1961 (age 65) Buenos Aires, Argentina
Citizenship	Argentina Italy
Education	Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina (BA) Graduate Institute of International Studies (MA, PhD)

Rafael Mariano Grossi, born on January 29, 1961, is a diplomat from Argentina. He is currently the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). This agency helps countries use nuclear energy safely and for peaceful reasons. Before this important role, he was Argentina's ambassador to Austria, Slovenia, and Slovakia, and worked with international groups in Vienna from 2013 to 2019.

Early Life and Education

Rafael Grossi was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1961. His parents were immigrants from Italy. He studied political science at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, finishing in 1983. Political science is about how governments work and how countries interact. In 1985, he started working for Argentina's foreign service, which means he represented his country in other parts of the world. Later, in 1997, he earned advanced degrees in history, international relations, and international politics from the University of Geneva and the Graduate Institute of International Studies.

A Career in Diplomacy and Nuclear Safety

Grossi with Yukiya Amano in 2011.

Grossi with Russian President Vladimir Putin in October 2022.

Rafael Grossi started his work in nuclear policy by helping Argentina's foreign service and a company called INVAP. Nuclear policy is about how countries manage nuclear materials and technology safely. From 1997 to 2000, he led a United Nations group that worked on keeping track of international weapons. Later, he advised a top United Nations official on ways to reduce weapons around the world. Between 2002 and 2007, he was a main assistant to the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). He also worked for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. During his time with the United Nations, Mr. Grossi visited nuclear facilities in North Korea. He also took part in meetings with representatives from Iran to discuss their nuclear activities and ensure they were for peaceful purposes. For Argentina's foreign service, he held many important roles. He was the General Director of Political Coordination for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship. He also served as Argentina's ambassador to Belgium and its representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva. From 2010 to 2013, he was a Deputy Director General at the IAEA. In 2013, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner appointed him as Argentina's ambassador to Austria, Slovakia, and Slovenia. He also represented Argentina to international organizations in Vienna. In 2015, Argentina suggested Mr. Grossi as a candidate for Director General of the IAEA. Other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean supported him. In 2016, he became the President of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, which works to control the export of nuclear materials. In 2017, President Mauricio Macri nominated Mr. Grossi to lead a conference in 2020. This conference was about the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, an agreement to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons.

Helping Find the ARA San Juan Submarine

In November 2017, an Argentine submarine called ARA San Juan went missing. Rafael Grossi had a clever idea to help find it. He thought about looking at the sound records from special listening stations around the world. These stations belong to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), which usually monitors for nuclear tests. Mr. Grossi contacted the head of the CTBTO, Lassina Zerbo, and persuaded him to check their records. His idea worked! The agency found a record of a sudden underwater sound event. This sound happened near where the submarine was last known to be. The listening stations on Ascension Island and Crozet Islands picked it up. A year later, the submarine's remains were found about twenty kilometers from this estimated spot.

Leading the International Atomic Energy Agency

On August 2, 2019, Rafael Grossi was put forward as Argentina's choice to become the Director General of the IAEA. The IAEA Board of Governors, which has 35 members, voted on October 28, 2019. No candidate received enough votes in the first round. The next day, October 29, a second vote was held. Mr. Grossi won with 24 votes, which was enough to be elected. He became the first person from Latin America to lead the organization. He officially started his role on December 3, 2019. In August 2022, Mr. Grossi led a team of IAEA experts to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. This plant is in Ukraine. His visit was to make sure the plant was safe and secure. Since 2022, Mr. Grossi has focused on monitoring nuclear materials in Iran. He works to ensure that all nuclear activities are for peaceful purposes. In September 2022, he shared concerns about traces of nuclear material found at some Iranian sites. In March 2026, Mr. Grossi reported on Iran's nuclear materials. He confirmed that the IAEA found no evidence of a program to build nuclear weapons. On March 17, 2026, Mr. Grossi also confirmed that an object hit the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in Iran. The IAEA reported that the reactor was not damaged, and no one was hurt. Mr. Grossi asked everyone to be very careful to prevent any nuclear accidents.

Possible Future Role: UN Secretary-General

In 2025, Argentina nominated Mr. Grossi to be a candidate for the 2026 United Nations Secretary-General selection. He publicly said he was interested in this very important role.

Personal Life

Rafael Grossi has eight children.

Books Written by Rafael Grossi

• Penúltima alianza: el proceso de expansión de la OTAN y el nuevo mapa de la seguridad internacional. Buenos Aires: Grupo Editor Latinoamericano (1999). (This book is about international alliances and global security.)
• Kosovo, los límites del intervencionismo humanitario. Buenos Aires: Editorial Nuevohacer (2000). (This book discusses humanitarian actions in international conflicts.)

Images for kids

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  Grossi with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in October 2021

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  Grossi with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on 26 April 2022

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  Grossi with UN Secretary-General António Guterres in May 2022