Key Takeaways
- The IAEA team’s return to Iran marks a significant step in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
- Iran has sought clarification on the framework governing IAEA inspections of its nuclear facilities.
- The IAEA team’s return to Iran has significant implications for the nuclear deal and Iran’s relations with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Tehran: The first team of the UN nuclear watchdog have returned to Iran to resume operations, following Tehran’s expulsion of all inspectors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) after its war with Israel.
“Now the first team of IAEA inspectors is back in Iran, and we are about to restart,” Grossi said as per Iran news agency.
Grossi, who was in Washington DC for the annual meeting of the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management, stopped short of saying if there was an agreement or timeline for them to resume operations, or whether the IAEA would adopt another framework for its work.
“When it comes to Iran, as you know, there are many facilities. Some were attacked, some were not. So we are discussing what kind of modalities, practical modalities, can be implemented in order to facilitate the restart of our work there, ” Mehr News Agency quoted Grossi saying to Fox News during an interview.
After suspending its cooperation with the IAEA, Iran later said that it would like to cooperate with the agency, but only in as far as holding technical discussions regarding nuclear energy, instead of allowing inspections.
The E3 countries, France, Germany, and the UK, had earlier threatened Tehran with the reimposition of all previously lifted international sanctions. These sanctions were eased under the 2015 nuclear deal, which provided some relief to Iran’s struggling economy.
Cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is a crucial component of the agreement. Under UN guidelines, international sanctions could be reinstated if even one party accuses Iran of non-compliance.
There remains deep hostility towards the IAEA within Iran. The country’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission issued a statement underscoring its distrust of the agency.
The statement stressed that Iran would only cooperate under conditions that ensure “full respect for the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Tehran has also sought clarification on the framework governing IAEA inspections of its nuclear facilities—many of which, it claimed, were damaged during Israeli airstrikes.
