Officials from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog agency based in Vienna, Austria, will begin a scheduled inspection of five major nuclear labs in Taiwan today.
The five IAEA experts will spend three days inspecting the laboratories' nuclear facilities and audit the radioactive materials the labs import from overseas.
The five labs being inspected are the Atomic Energy Council's (AEC) Institute of Nuclear Energy Research, the National Science Council's Synchrotron Radiation Research Center, the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, National Chao Tung University and National Tsing Hua University.
The IAEA officials met with officials from the AEC, Taiwan's nuclear watchdog agency, yesterday and Monday.
Council officials said yesterday that IAEA inspection is a routine one.
They said the visitors would not be checking the ability of Taiwan's nuclear power plants to prevent terrorist attacks.
"The inspection is just one of the IAEA's regular ones and is irrelevant to recent anti-terrorism activities," said Chen Yi-bin (陳宜彬), director of the council's Department of Planning, at a press conference yesterday.
After the Sept.11 terrorist attacks on the US, the IAEA said that nuclear power plants around the world are structurally vulnerable to similar attacks.
Since then the international agency has worked with several countries to help them to prevent, intercept and respond to terrorist acts and other nuclear safety and security incidents.
AEC officials said yesterday that the IAEA inspectors would be checking the security of the five labs' nuclear facilities and reviewing videotapes from the labs' security cameras.
The IAEA officials will leave Taiwan on Saturday.
The IAEA inspection has inspired speculation in the local media about possible links to efforts to prevent nuclear weapons proliferation, coming as it does less than a week after the disclosure of North Korea's secret nuclear weapons program stunned the world.
Taiwan's covert nuclear wea-pons program, begun in 1964, was ended in 1988 due to pressure from the US.
AEC officials said yesterday that Taiwan's nuclear policies demonstrate that the country did not possess nuclear weapons and would respect the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Taiwan signed the treaty in 1968.
It has also implemented the IAEA's "Program 93+2," which is aimed at strengthening the existing safeguards system.
The IAEA conducts an average of 10 inspections a year of Taiwan's nuclear facilities and the nation has a good track record on its nuclear-related performance, according to the AEC.
Council officials said the IAEA is also promoting a random inspection program, which means that agency officials would not have to notify relevant agencies in a country about an inspection tour until after they arrived.
The council officials said that Taiwan would be glad to comply with the random inspection program if most other countries accept it as well.
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
RSS