TEHRAN, Aug 11 (Alliance News): A senior official from the UN nuclear watchdog will arrive in Tehran on Monday for talks aimed at setting a framework for cooperation, but no visits to nuclear sites are planned, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday.
The visit comes amid strained relations between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) following Israel’s airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities during a 12-day war in June. Since then, IAEA inspectors have been denied access to Iran’s sites, despite IAEA chief Rafael Grossi stressing that inspections remain a top priority.
Iran has accused the IAEA of facilitating the attacks by releasing a critical report on May 31, which led the agency’s 35-member Board of Governors to declare Tehran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations. Tehran denies seeking nuclear weapons and maintains it remains committed to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Araghchi said discussions would focus on defining a framework for cooperation before any inspections take place. Last month, Iran suspended cooperation with the IAEA, citing its failure to condemn Israeli and US strikes.
The June attacks also derailed nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington, which had been the highest-level contact since the US withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal in 2018. Iran now demands guarantees against military action before resuming negotiations.
Iranian diplomats recently met with representatives from Germany, Britain, and France, who have warned they may trigger UN sanctions under the 2015 deal’s “snapback mechanism” if no agreement is reached by the end of August.
Tehran has cautioned against such a move, with the mechanism set to expire in October.
