Iran has backed out of a deal that would have allowed international inspectors to assess nuclear sites.
“Our message is clear: Iran must resolve its safeguards issues without delay. It must provide practical cooperation through access, answers, restoration of monitoring, to enable the Agency to do its job and help rebuild confidence,” UK Ambassador Corinne Kitsell said in a statement on behalf of France, Germany, the UK and the United States to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board.
The message comes as the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog passed a resolution demanding that Iran must inform it “without delay” of the status of enriched uranium stock. The resolution, seen by Reuters, states that Iran is to “provide the agency without delay with precise information on nuclear material accountancy and safeguarded nuclear facilities in Iran, and grant the agency all access it requires to verify this information.”
The resolution passed with 19 votes in favor, 3 against, and 12 abstentions. Countries opposing the resolution were Russia, China, and Niger.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Wednesday that any agreement aimed at reducing the enrichment level to zero a betrayal, and we will not submit to it,” adding, “In our interaction with the agency, we have nothing to do with the bombed nuclear facilities and will cooperate only regarding those facilities that have not been bombed.”
The IAEA recently warned that it believes most of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile survived the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on nuclear sites. Grossi noted multiple outcomes remain possible, including Iran reducing enrichment, relocating the stockpile abroad, or escalating toward weaponization.
