IAEA once again verifies Iran's compliance with nuclear deal

EghtesadOnline: The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has once again confirmed that Iran is living up to its commitments under the 2015 multilateral nuclear agreement.

News ID: ۷۴۵۰۴۵

24 February 2018

The UN nuclear agency said in a report, cited by French news agency AFP, that the Islamic Republic is sticking to the deal's key parameters such as the number of uranium centrifuges and stockpiles, according to PressTV.

Iran has informed the IAEA of a decision "to construct naval nuclear propulsion in future” and the agency has requested “further clarifications and amplifications," the report added.

The IAEA, which is tasked with monitoring Iran's nuclear activities, has repeatedly verified Tehran's full commitment to its side of the bargain.

Iran and the P5+1 countries — namely the US, Russia, China, France, Britain, and Germany — finalized the nuclear accord, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in July 2015 and started implementing it in January 2016.

Under the deal, Iran undertook to apply certain limits to its nuclear program in exchange for the termination of all nuclear-related sanctions against Tehran.

However, US President Donald Trump sees the agreement as a legacy of his predecessor — former president Barack Obama — that he should undo.

Last month, Trump extended waivers of key economic sanctions on Iran, lifted under the JCPOA, for another 120 days but said he was doing so “for the last time.”

He also called on European allies and the US Congress to work with him to “fix the disastrous flaws” in the pact or face a US exit.

Iran's Ambassador to the IAEA Reza Najafi said Thursday's report was the IAEA's tenth since the deal took effect, adding that the document once gain confirms that Iran's nuclear activities are in accordance with the JCPOA.

The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), he said, had sent a letter to the IAEA and informed it of its decision to work on the nuclear propulsion.

Najafi further stressed that Iran, along with other IAEA member states, expects the agency to continue its "technical and neutral" work to verify the implementation of the JCPOA.