Grossi Hails ‘Constructive’ Talks in Tehran 

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency said the global watchdog’s cooperation with Iran will surely be enhanced as a result of his recent trip to Tehran. 
“My colleagues and I had constructive and positive meetings with Iranian authorities which I’m certain will pave the way for better future interaction,” he said in a meeting with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Saturday, according to the president’s official website.
He also described Iran’s ties with the agency as positive and longstanding, saying it requires constant and high-level cooperation to preserve such relations.    
Raisi said IAEA officials’ visits to Iran indicate the Islamic Republic’s strong will for constructive cooperation with the international organization. 
“Iran has had the highest level of collaboration with the agency based on good will and faithfulness,” he said. 
Tehran expects the IAEA to maintain its professionalism and avoid allowing the world’s political powers, who pursue their own agenda, to affect its activities, according to the president. 
He also expressed hope that the agency would show professional, fair and impartial behavior in reflecting the reality about Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities and clarify on the Islamic Republic’s adherence to IAEA regulations. 
The president also highlighted Iran’s compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal, confirmed by more than 15 IAEA reports, after the United States violated the accord and European parties failed to meet their own commitments. 
The US withdrew from the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and reimposed tough sanctions that prompted Tehran to eventually react by rowing back on its commitments. 
Negotiations have been underway since early 2021 to restore the deal. 
The IAEA chief arrived in Tehran on Friday for discussions with Iranian nuclear officials about ambiguities over the Islamic Republic’s activities. 
Before meeting the president on Saturday, he attended a series of sessions with the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami, and other nuclear officials and experts, as well as Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. 
The two sides agreed on a joint agenda for measures to facilitate bilateral cooperation, according to the deputy for political affairs at the presidential office, Mohammad Jamshidi. 
In his meeting with Raisi, Grossi expressed delight at reaching this agreement, Jamshidi said in a tweet. 
“Raisi described cooperation as a two-way process which can be followed up if the agency maintains its independence and the Iranian nation’s rights are upheld.” 

Systematic Dialogue 

The IAEA reported that it has detected uranium particles enriched to nearly 84% at Iran’s underground Fordow nuclear site, after it discovered an unannounced change to the interconnections between the two cascades, or clusters, of centrifuges at the facility. 
The information was released in the media before the IAEA officially publicized it. 
An IAEA delegation led by the head of the agency’s safeguards department Massimo Aparo traveled to Tehran to hold discussions with Iranian officials, who later invited the agency’s director general to visit and pursue the talks.  
Iran dismissed reports about changes in the interconnections, saying it was a “mistake” by the inspector. 
It also said unintended fluctuations in enrichment levels may occur and are normal, but it is the stocks of end product that should be assessed. 
Tehran and the agency are also at odds over traces of uranium that the IAEA claims have been found at three old undeclared sites in the country. 
Iran denies the claims, saying it is based on fabricated information. It has, however, provided answers to the agency that the director general dismissed as uncredible in June, paving the way for the passing of two resolutions against the Islamic Republic by the Board of Governors. 
Speaking at joint press conference with Eslami on Saturday afternoon, Grossi said the IAEA seeks to have serious and systematic dialogue with Iran, according to ISNA. 
Asked about the repeated leakage of IAEA confidential reports, Grossi said it is not favorable, but makes it necessary for the agency and Iran to have constant dialogue to prevent the fueling of rumors. 
Grossi also said he could not make any forecast about the European countries’ possible political pressure on Iran in the upcoming meeting of the Board of Governors on Monday, but asserted that countries may try to exercise influence for different purposes anyway. 
“It is important that Iran and the agency have close cooperation so that such pressure would decrease or be neutralized,” he said. 
Grossi also reassured that the agency would never be used as “a political tool.”
“I make a vow that we don’t work under the instruction of any country and don’t take orders from anyone,” he said.  
Eslami said in case a resolution is passed against Iran by the IAEA board, relevant officials would decide on an appropriate response and the AEOI would act accordingly. 
“We are trying to reassure the agency that we act based on the safeguards and are committed to it,” he said, adding that Iran would not allow anyone or any incident to call this compliance into question. 
He also said the three European countries, namely France, Britain and Germany, who spearhead campaigns to pass censure motions against Iran at the Board of Governors, always cite JCPOA commitments while these obligations are mutual. 
Iranian officials say despite exceeding the limits of the JCPOA, nuclear activities still remain within the framework of the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement required by the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. 
Eslami said he agreed with Grossi to continue cooperation within the framework of the safeguards alone. 
“So long as they [other JCPOA parties] have not returned to their [JCPOA] commitments, the agency will gain reassurance about our activities in this way,” he said.