The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency may visit Tehran in January for discussions on Iran’s nuclear program and cooperation with the agency, according to two European diplomats.
Rafael Grossi will possibly try to persuade Iran to cooperate with the agency regarding its investigations into the country’s nuclear program, Politico reported, citing the diplomats.
This would particularly relate to the IAEA’s probe into nuclear material that it claims have been found at three undeclared sites in Iran.
Iran argues that the safeguards questions are based on fabricated intelligence and invalid, yet it provided relevant explanations as part of an agreement with the agency in March.
The director general, however, dismissed the information as uncredible, which convinced the IAEA Board of Governors to adopt a western-backed censure motion against the country in June.
Officials from the agency were set to visit Tehran before the board’s November meeting, but the trip was cancelled due to fresh developments.
The 35-nation board eventually passed a new resolution in November, ordering Iran to cooperate urgently with the agency’s investigation.
Iran described both documents as politically motivated and responded by further reducing its compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal.
The landmark agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, curbed Iran’s nuclear activity in return for sanctions relief, but the United States pulled out in 2018 and reimposed tough sanctions, prompting Tehran to react by rowing back on its commitments.
Talks have been underway since early last year in Vienna, Austria, to work out how both sides can resume compliance, but have been stalled for months over final differences.
A key bone of contention is the IAEA investigation into the alleged uranium particles, as Iran demands the closure of the probe before any agreement on the JCPOA.
A group of IAEA experts traveled to Tehran on December 19 along this line, where Iranian officials suggested the idea of a visit by the director general, according to Politico.
Effective Solution
While Iran keeps engaged in Vienna talks through the European Union coordinator, American officials have been claiming that the negotiations are no longer on top of their agenda as they have shifted focus on Iran’s domestic unrest and alleged supply of arms to Russia.
Authorities in Tehran maintain that the exchange of messages has been ongoing through the EU and a deal is available if the US makes the required political decisions.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian recently met the EU coordinator Josep Borrell in Jordan to discuss the new developments.
Borrell said afterwards that the meeting was “necessary”, adding they agreed to “keep communication open” and restore the JCPOA on basis of Vienna negotiations.
Amir-Abdollahian said Iran would back the revival of the deal as long as its red lines were respected, asking other parties to the deal to be “realistic”.
He expressed Iran’s readiness to conclude a deal based on a draft that was drawn up after months of hard and intense talks.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also reiterated in recent remarks that the most “effective and durable” solution to address Iran’s nuclear issue is through diplomacy.
“We continue to believe … that the best way to deal with this challenge … is through diplomacy,” he said in a briefing on Thursday.
However, Washington accuses Tehran of making extraneous demands that fall outside the scope of the JCPOA.
Blinken said despite the efforts that the US and its partners in Europe have made, “Iran has not been willing or able to do what’s necessary to come back into compliance with the agreement.”
