Iran has asked the International Atomic Energy Agency to halt its investigation after the agency found traces of nuclear material at an undisclosed location. Meanwhile, Russian representatives spoke about progress in a new round of talks in Vienna aimed at restarting the nuclear deal.
This is being investigated by the International Atomic Energy Agency to identify previous clandestine nuclear activities. Iranian Foreign Minister Hussein Amir Abdullahian reiterated Iran’s opposition.
“We will continue to work with the IAEA,” Amir Abdullahian said in a call with UN Secretary-General António Guterres. “But at the same time, the agency must abandon political cognitive biases, And work according to a technical framework.”
The Vienna talks were called off in mid-March, and differences between Iran and the United States remain. The EU has been coordinating the talks and has proposed a compromise to resume talks last Thursday, Aug. 4. EU said. The proposal takes into account the views of all parties.
On Friday, August 5, an official Iranian source confirmed that one of the issues under discussion was the International Atomic Energy Agency’s investigation into Iran’s nuclear activities. Previously, the agency found traces of nuclear material at undisclosed sites of Iran’s nuclear activities.
The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), citing an Iranian source, said the locations were not released because the matter “is of a political nature and should not be used as an excuse to resist Iran in the future.”
In late May, the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report. According to the report, traces of nuclear material have been found in three locations where Iran has not disclosed its nuclear activities, and Iran has not fully explained this.
Following the publication of the paper, Western countries submitted a proposal to the IAEA Board of Governors. The proposal criticized Iran for not cooperating with the investigation, while Iran also dismantled some surveillance footage set up by the IAEA at some of its nuclear facilities, raising tensions with Iran.
At the time, IAEA director-general Rafael Grossi warned that efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal were under way and that Iran’s move could deal a severe blow.
Negotiation progress
Mikhail Ulyanov, the Russian negotiator for the Vienna talks, said that Iran is currently in talks with the other six countries, and its development is in the right direction. He also explained that Russia fully supports the proposed draft agreement.
On Sunday, August 7, the Permanent Representative of Russia to the International Organization in Vienna met with the European Chief Negotiator Enrique Mora. After the meeting, Uliano tweeted, “Looks like we’re making progress. So we hope nothing else will happen to derail this.” But he did not provide further details.
Negotiations on the Iran nuclear deal resumed in Vienna on Thursday, Aug. 4, after a five-month suspension. However, there were no signs of a breakthrough over the weekend.
The U.S. and Iran held indirect talks in the Qatari capital in late June, pushed by the European Union, but ended without a breakthrough.
Diplomats from the U.S., Iran and five other parties (China, Germany, France, Britain and Russia) are trying to reach a final solution in this round of talks in Vienna, a deal to lift U.S. sanctions and reimpose restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program agreement.