PARIS, December 15. /TASS/. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continues to maintain contact with Iran despite the suspension of cooperation, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told the RFI radio station.
"Contact with Iran remains in place. We haven’t yet been able to restore cooperation to the required level, but I believe it is critically important," Grossi said.
According to him, the dialogue continues through "behind-the-scenes negotiations and confidential contacts." "We must not forget that even if Iran’s physical infrastructure, particularly at facilities in Isfahan, Natanz and Fordow, has been severely damaged, nuclear materials still persist. We are talking about 400 kg of uranium enriched up to 60%, which remains a significant concern," the IAEA director general noted.
Overnight into June 13, Israel launched a military operation against Iran. Less than 24 hours later, Iran retaliated. Nine days after, the US entered the conflict, striking Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. On June 23, Iran attacked Al-Udeid, the largest US air base in the Middle East, located in Qatar. US President Donald Trump later announced that Israel and Iran had agreed to a ceasefire, which came into effect on June 24.
On September 9, Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) signed an agreement in Egypt to resume cooperation that had been suspended following the June attacks by Israel and the United States. Tehran sharply criticized the agency for failing to condemn the states that had struck its nuclear facilities. Following the signing of the document, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that if any hostile actions against the republic resumed, all contacts with the IAEA would again be suspended. On November 20, in response to the IAEA’s decision to pass another anti-Iranian resolution, Tehran notified the UN nuclear watchdog that it was terminating the cooperation agreement previously signed between Tehran and the agency in Cairo.