Speaking in an online interview with Colombian media, Grossi said that in response to a question that Iran has recently been very critical of him that recently, after long negotiations, the IAEA inspectors returned to Iran and they went to the Bushehr reactor as a first step in resuming inspections. He argued that Iran and the IAEA still need to agree on a set of technical modality and measures to be able to access all the sites, including those damaged in the US-Israeli attacks, because there is still nuclear material under the rubble of these sites and this material is still a matter of concern.
He continued to say that the IAEA is trying to restore contacts with Iran that were cut off because of the US-Israeli attacks.
The IAEA chief added that military attacks may have a short-term impact, admitting that military strikes will not destroy Iran's nuclear program.
He rejected that the IAEA and his reports gave the United States a green light to attack Iran's nuclear sites, claiming that their reports simply reported how Iran's nuclear program was, without adding anything new or surprising to the situation of the Iranian nuclear sites to justify military action.
The IAEA chief said that as regards the nuclear weapons, his reports made it clear that Iran had no plans to build nuclear weapons at the time, so do they now, so anyone who thinks this report was a reason for war is completely wrong.
Earlier today, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that the Europeans have undermined their standing in the diplomatic process aimed at resolving the country’s nuclear issue, and thus will play a “diminished" role in any future negotiations.
Araghchi's remarks came one week after the conclusion of the so-called snapback process initiated by the UK, Germany, and France (collectively known as the E3) aimed at restoring UN sanctions against Iran.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting with ambassadors, chargés d'affaires, and heads of foreign and international missions residing in the capital Tehran, the top Iranian diplomat said the European trio considered the snapback a new leverage to put pressure on Iran, but now they see that the activation of the mechanism resolved no problems and only made diplomacy more difficult and complex.
The top Iranian diplomat was also asked about the fate of an agreement Iran and the IAEA signed in the Egyptian capital of Cairo on September 9 to resume cooperation.
He said that currently, the deal can no longer serve as the basis for Tehran’s cooperation with the IAEA and that Iran will soon announce its new decision regarding the manner in which cooperation will proceed with the UN’s atomic watchdog.
MNA/ISN1404071308587
Your Comment