WASHINGTON: United Nations nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi has confirmed that International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors have returned to Iran for the first time since Israeli and American strikes targeted Iranian nuclear facilities this year.
Iran suspended cooperation with the IAEA following a twelve-day war with Israel in June, citing the agency’s failure to condemn the strikes on its nuclear installations.
Grossi stated during a Fox News interview that “Now the first team of IAEA inspectors is back in Iran, and we are about to restart.”
The director general explained that “When it comes to Iran, as you know, there are many facilities. Some were attacked, some were not.”
He added that “So we are discussing what kind of... practical modalities can be implemented in order to facilitate the restart of our work there.”
This development coincided with Iran’s talks with Britain, France and Germany in Geneva aimed at avoiding a sanctions snapback threatened by European powers under the 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi stated it was “high time” for the European trio “to make the right choice and give diplomacy time and space.”
Britain, France and Germany have threatened to trigger the nuclear deal’s snapback mechanism by the end of August.
The June conflict began with an unprecedented Israeli surprise attack and derailed Iran’s nuclear negotiations with the United States.
Israel maintains it launched attacks to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, which Tehran consistently denies.
The 2015 nuclear agreement collapsed in 2018 when then-president Donald Trump withdrew the United States and imposed sanctions on Iran. – AFP
