VIENNA, June 18. /TASS/. Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) should settle the issue of two disputed objects, which has no direct relation to the monitoring of the Iranian nuclear program, Russian Permanent Representative to international organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov said during the IAEA online Board of Governors meeting Thursday.
"Deeply disappointed and concerned that #Tehran and the Secretariat are yet to resolve the issue of access to two locations in Iran that are of interest to the Agency. However there are no reasons whatsoever to overdramatize the situation," Ulyanov tweeted. "We would like to emphasize once again the need for #Iran and the Secretariat to resolve the current problems immediately. "
"We are puzzled that for over a year the Board has been involved in issues that are far from risks of nuclear proliferation. We are talking about historical research, which is of third importance in terms of monitoring the current state of the [Iranian] nuclear program," the envoy added.
Today, the Board reviews the report of the agency’s Director General Rafael Grossi regarding problems with access to two objects in Iran, where the agency suspects possible storage of undocumented nuclear material.
Access to disputed objects
On June 5, AFP and Reuters published the IAEA confidential report on nuclear inspections in Iran. According to the report, Iranian stockpile of enriched uranium exceeded the limit, allowed by the Iranian Nuclear Deal, by eight times. The Agency expressed its concern that Iran still does not allow the experts to access two objects, where undocumented nuclear materials could be stored. The report calls on Iran to immediately begin cooperating with the Agency in full, including providing access to the mentioned sites.
On June 15, IAEA Director General once again called on Iran to provide access to the two possible nuclear storages. According to the official, the situation has a negative impact on the Agency’s ability to provide reliable guarantees of absence of an undocumented nuclear activity at these Iranian objects. Grossi also explained that the issue of access is not connected to Iran’s implementation of the Nuclear Deal, but rather a part of the agency’s guarantees jurisdiction.