North Korea finally expelled IAEA observers and as a result, there are no on-the-ground international inspectors in North Korea. The IAEA-certified the nuclear power plant at Rawatbhata in Rajasthan in 2012, which drew criticism as the power plant had two incidents of leakage of nuclear material earlier that year. The second incident affected at least four workers who worked in the nuclear power plant and had caused concern among the scientific community. It will also test the ability of the IAEA to deal with powerful states from its position of “uneven authority”. The issues involved between Iran and the U.S. indicate that they are not part of the mandate of the IAEA.

Source: The Hindu February 27, 2021 15:45 UTC