TEHRAN, August 18. /TASS/. Talks between representatives from Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) may take place in the near future, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmail Baghaei said.
"Possibly, in the next few days, another round of talks with the agency will be held," he said at a weekly press conference.
Following talks held in Tehran on August 11 between Iranian officials and an IAEA representative, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi announced that the parties had reached an agreement to continue consultations on Iran’s nuclear program. The diplomat specified that the format of cooperation between Tehran and the agency under the current circumstances was discussed at the meeting with IAEA Deputy Director General Massimo Aparo. Gharibabadi noted that the Iranian side protested the IAEA’s failure to fulfill its obligations during the Israeli and US attack on Iran.
The fact that the IAEA did not condemn Israeli and US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities caused a flurry of criticism from Tehran, which accused the IAEA leadership of politicizing the agency’s activities. On July 2, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a law suspending cooperation with the IAEA. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on July 22 that Iran did not rule out that the agency’s inspectors might return to the country in the future.
Overnight into June 13, Israel launched a military operation against Iran. Less than 24 hours later, Tehran retaliated. Nine days later, in the early hours of June 22, US jets targeted three Iranian nuclear sites, effectively entering the conflict. The following evening, Tehran carried out a missile strike on Al Udeid, the largest US military base in the region, located in Qatar. According to US officials, there were no casualties or significant damage. US President Donald Trump later announced that Israel and Iran had agreed to a complete ceasefire. The truce took effect on June 24.