Iran confident IAEA will remain impartial: Nuclear chief

EghtesadOnline: The head of Iran’s nuclear agency says the Islamic Republic is confident that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which monitors Iranian compliance with a multilateral 2015 deal, will remain impartial in its reporting.

News ID: ۷۴۳۸۵۳

19 September 2017

Ali Akbar Salehi, who heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), made the remark in a speech at the 61st IAEA General Conference in Vienna on Monday, according to PressTV.

The IAEA is the official institution in charge of verification of Iranian compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was struck between Iran and six other countries in July 2015.

The agency has consistently verified Iran’s adherence to its contractual obligations.

In return, a range of nuclear-related sanctions that had been imposed on Iran by the United Nations Security Council, individual countries, or the European Union were terminated.

However, the current US administration, which took office a year after the JCPOA began being implemented, has been opposed to the deal and is seeking a withdrawal.

In its efforts to undermine the deal, the White House has recently attempted to sway the IAEA’s reporting on Iran. Last month, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley traveled to Vienna to press the IAEA to request access to Iran’s military sites, a move that Washington hoped would undermine the JCPOA.

The IAEA has withstood that pressure, making it clear that Iran is abiding by its obligations and that there is no need to request access to Iranian military sites.

In his Monday remarks, Salehi referred to those attempts by the US and said US demands from the IAEA went beyond the provisions of the JCPOA.

He said the US’s hostile behavior was in contravention of both the JCPOA’s letter and spirit.

He said, however, that Iran was confident the IAEA would resist such unacceptable requests and would protect sensitive technical and industrial information obtained during inspections in Iran.

The 61st IAEA General Conference started in Vienna on Monday and will last until September 22.