Islami stated that “inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) can only visit nuclear sites in Iran with the approval of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council,” emphasizing that the agency has not fulfilled its legal duties towards Iran. He added that “the law passed by the Iranian parliament sets two clear conditions, and the responsibility for evaluating their implementation falls on the Atomic Energy Organization and the Supreme National Security Council,” continuing: “We have asked the agency to condemn the attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, but it has not done so, nor has it issued any statement ensuring the protection of information related to Iran’s nuclear industry.”
Islami concluded by saying that “the presence of inspectors does not occur according to the agency’s usual programs but only in two cases approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Supreme National Security Council, which are the Bushehr and Tehran reactors, where inspections were conducted, and inspectors left the country after completing them.”
The Director General of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi, stated that “the agency has resumed inspections of Iran’s facilities, but we have not been granted permission to access the 60% enriched uranium stockpile.” He added that “Iran is strongly protecting its 60% enriched uranium stockpile, believing it remains vulnerable to further attacks,” explaining that “increasing Iran’s uranium enrichment level to 90% is a matter of weeks, not months or years.”
The Director General of the IAEA affirmed that “understanding the extent of the setback in Iran’s nuclear program after the attacks is difficult without inspections,” noting that “Iran’s nuclear program no longer exists as we knew it, but it can be rebuilt.”
It is noteworthy that the 2015 nuclear agreement has been faltering since the United States withdrew from it during the first term of President Donald Trump in 2018, reinstating sanctions on Tehran. Western powers and Israel have long accused Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, which Tehran denies. Tensions have escalated since the 12-day war between Iran and Israel last June, which led to disruptions and prompted Iran to suspend its cooperation with the IAEA.
