Iran Demands Shielding IAEA against Political Influence
TEHRAN (FNA)- Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Eslami said that the UN nuclear watchdog should not allow the political influence of certain countries affect its decisions.
Eslami told Qatar’s Al Jazeera news channel that the answers the Islamic Republic has so far given to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have been accurate.
He added that despite that the agency’s director-general lacks serious determination to consider Iran’s answers as persuasive, noting that the IAEA invokes intelligence provided by Iran’s enemies, notably the Israeli regime, and it has failed to condemn terrorist attacks on Iran’s atomic facilities, which raises a big question.
The Iranian nuclear chief also said the resolution that the US and the European troika are trying to get approved at the IAEA’s board of governors will not create a new situation.
Eslami underlined that the IAEA must stop political influence within itself and stick to its own rules.
Asked about Iran’s nuclear activities, he said that a decision to enrich uranium to 90% purity lies with relevant officials.
“We wouldn’t make a decision to enrich [uranium] with the aim of doing acts of provocation”, Eslami noted.
He further suggested that the fate of the Iran nuclear deal will have no impact on the country’s atomic program, saying, “We will continue our peaceful nuclear activities irrespective of the JCPOA."
Eslami once again stressed that the IAEA will have no access to the contents of surveillance cameras at an Iranian centrifuge production site without Iran and the other sides reaching a deal in Vienna.
The AEOI’s head said Tehran is ready to comply with all the provisions of the JCPOA if the other parties do the same.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian warned on Sunday that those who support or sponsor adoption of a resolution against Iran at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will account for its consequences.
“Those who push for anti-Iran resolution at IAEA will be responsible for all the consequences,” Amir Abdollahian wrote on his twitter page.
“We welcome a good, strong and lasting agreement,” he added.
“It's within reach if US/E3 (Washington and the European trio) are realistic,” Amir Abdollahian said.
Iran has also repeatedly cautioned in the past that adoption of an anti-Iranian resolution was counterproductive to ongoing talks aimed at reviving a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.
The remarks came a day before a meeting of the IAEA’s Board of Governors. The event is reportedly set to adopt an anti-Iran resolution, drafted by Britain, France, Germany, and the US, to accuse the Islamic Republic of withholding cooperation with the agency.
The expected adoption of the resolution also comes following a trip by IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi to the Israeli-occupied territories.
Iran has previously cautioned the IAEA against allowing the Israeli regime—which is leading a constant bid aimed at incriminating Iran’s nuclear work—against allowing Tel Aviv to influence the agency’s independent mandate and decision-making.
The Israeli regime continues to be the sole possessor of nuclear arms in the Middle East region, with a stockpile of hundreds of atomic warheads. Due to the cover provided by the US and Europeans, however, the regime has always refused to open up its nuclear sites to IAEA inspectors and also refused to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).