The United Nations nuclear watchdog has issued a strong condemnation of Iran’s recent decision to withdraw accreditation from several of its most seasoned inspectors, calling the move “disproportionate and unprecedented.”
Rafael Grossi, the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), made this statement in response to Iran’s announcement. The Iranian authorities have withdrawn the designation of numerous experienced Agency inspectors who were tasked with carrying out verification activities in Iran under the NPT Safeguards Agreement.
This withdrawal follows a similar move in which Iran revoked the designation of another experienced Agency inspector. In total, this action effectively removes about one-third of the core group of the IAEA’s most experienced inspectors designated for Iran. These inspectors possessed unique knowledge in enrichment technology and had previously conducted crucial verification work at Iranian enrichment facilities under IAEA safeguards.
While this measure is formally permitted by the NPT Safeguards Agreement, Iran’s execution of it has a severe and direct impact on the IAEA’s ability to effectively carry out inspections in Iran. Grossi strongly condemned this unilateral action, which contradicts the cooperation that should exist between the Agency and Iran.
He emphasized that without effective cooperation, confidence and trust will remain elusive, and the Agency will be unable to fulfill its verification mandate in Iran, providing credible assurances that nuclear materials and activities in Iran are for peaceful purposes.
The 2015 nuclear deal between major world powers and Iran, which aimed to curb Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for economic sanctions relief, began to unravel in 2018 when then-US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement and reimposed sanctions. In response, Iran intensified its nuclear program while denying any ambitions to develop nuclear weapons.
Efforts to revive the deal have been unsuccessful thus far, with the United States and the E3 group (France, Germany, and the United Kingdom) threatening to call for a new resolution against Iran at an IAEA board meeting. They warned that further action may be taken to hold Iran accountable if it does not fully comply with its obligations.