to report «iusnews»; Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Eslami dismissed the International Atomic Energy Agency chief’s claims over Tehran’s failure to work with the UN nuclear watchdog’s inspectors.
Iran has the right to “accept or reject” the inspectors according to our safeguards, Eslami said on Tuesday, adding that his country has accepted 120 inspectors, “some of whom are visiting the sites right now”.
The official asserted that Iran acts within the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) framework, however the IAEA report is based on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the nuclear deal, which Eslami noted that the Western side has failed to hold up their end of the bargain in the agreement.
“When the (Western) parties did not fulfill their commitments, putting pressure on Iran is unacceptable. If they return to their commitments, so will Iran,” the AEOI head stated.
On Monday, the IAEA chief Rafael Grossi alleged that Tehran has failed to answer questions about its past nuclear activities at three sites and has denied access to the sites for the nuclear agency’s inspectors.
In early October, Iran announced it has barred a few European inspectors with the IAEA from future activities in the country who have a history of “harsh and political behavior” against Tehran. Tehran has put the number of the delisted inspectors at “three or four”, explaining that the number is a tiny fraction of the total 127 approved inspectors.
Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing the 2015 accord with six world powers. However, Washington’s exit in May 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the agreement in limbo.
Iran has always had full cooperation with the IAEA and allowed it to visit the country’s nuclear sites, but calls the nuclear agency's approach unconstructive and destructive. Tehran has asked the watchdog to avoid politicizing the issue and focus on technical aspects in line with the organization’s mandate.
Iranian officials have repeatedly called on Grossi to stop Israeli-influenced attitude, and emphasized that Tehran would never surrender to the political behavior of the UN nuclear watchdog that is affected by the Zionist pressures.
Tehran has on many occasions voiced its readiness to resolve differences with the UN nuclear body within a framework of constructive and mutual interaction and technical collaboration.
In an interview with Al-Jazeera news television network in late September, Eslami stated that his country’s nuclear activities are to be inspected 10 times more than other states while the size of Tehran’s nuclear facilities is about 2% of the world’s nuclear sites.
The official stressed that it’s not reasonable for his country to be checked ten times more than other nations.
Iranian officials say Tehran is not in pursuit of developing a military nuclear capability to defend itself, reiterating that nuclear weapons have no room in Iran's military doctrine.
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei has even issued a fatwa (religious decree) declaring that the acquisition, development, and use of nuclear weapons violate Islamic principles and are therefore forbidden.
Tehran has repeatedly rejected all accusations levelled by the West over the existence of undeclared nuclear activities or material in Iran, describing the allegations by the US and its European allies as a propaganda campaign against the country's peaceful nuclear program.
