DUBAI, December 12. /TASS/. Tehran will not allow any enhanced inspections of its nuclear facilities by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as long as anti-Iranian sanctions imposed by the West remain in effect, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said.
"Iran will remain committed to its obligations within the framework of agreements [previously reached with the IAEA]. While harsh sanctions are in effect, it will not permit any monitoring beyond these obligations," the senior diplomat wrote on his page on the X social network.
According to Gharibabadi, if IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi finds any deviations during inspections, it is best to document them "instead of relaying his assumptions and speculations to the media."
On November 29, Iran notified the IAEA of its intention to install approximately 6,000 new centrifuges for uranium enrichment at the Fordow and Natanz nuclear facilities. That said, Tehran informed the organization that it plans to enrich uranium to 5% using these centrifuges.
On November 21, the IAEA Board of Governors adopted a Western-backed resolution criticizing Iran for allegedly insufficient cooperation. The document states that the IAEA must prepare a detailed report on Iran’s nuclear program by the spring of 2025.
Iran’s nuclear deal
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany struck a nuclear deal with Iran in 2015 to address the crisis over its nuclear program. Then-US President Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement in 2018, while incumbent President Joe Biden has repeatedly signaled his willingness to bring the US back into the nuclear deal.
Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany, China, the US and France have been in talks with Iran in Vienna since April 2021, seeking to restore the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in its original form. In November 2022, Grossi said the latest round of talks with Iranian officials ended in the Austrian capital without achieving any specific results.
In response to Washington’s withdrawal from the JCPOA, the Iranian parliament passed a law outlining a strategic plan to remove sanctions and protect the Iranian people’s interests. As part of this plan, Iran scaled back several obligations under the nuclear deal, particularly by suspending inspections by the IAEA beyond the safeguard agreement related to the Non-Proliferation Treaty and prohibiting the use of stringent monitoring measures. According to Iranian officials, the West must return to full compliance with the JCPOA to restore monitoring mechanisms for Iran’s nuclear program.