IAEA Not to Bow to Foreign Pressure Over Iran
IRAN NEWS NATIONAL DESK
TEHRAN – The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency says the IAEA will not succumb to outside pressure over Iran.
Rafael Mariano Grossi made the comment in a joint press conference, in Tehran, with Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali-Akbar Slahehi.
“The IAEA is not swayed by any third party, but naturally there is some pressure which the agency will not bow to,” said the visiting IAEA chief.
He said there has been no negative change in relations between the IAEA and Tehran, and the agency’s approach vis-à-vis Iran has not changed at all.
However, the IAEA director underlined that there have always been technical questions over IAEA-Tehran relations for further transparency.
Grossi reiterated that he will not allow certain elements to take advantage of the agency to achieve their own objectives.
He said Iran is one of the locations where numerous inspections have been carried out; nevertheless, he added, there are cases which need clarification.
The IAEA director said the agency and Iran have constructive cooperation.
He said all reports published by the agency are systematic and released with special sensitivity.
Grossi described Iran-IAEA ties as significant.
Slaehi, for his part, weighed in on the relationship between Iran and the IAEA.
“A new chapter has opened between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency,” he said.
Salehi expressed hope Grossi’s visit to Iran will be fruitful.
“With this trip, our cooperation will further expand. I hope the outcome of this visit will please both sides, so much so that the two sides will fulfill their responsibilities, with the agency acting in accordance with the [IAEA’s] Statute and the Islamic Republic of Iran in line with the Safeguards Agreement and the Additional Protocol,” Salehi said.
Noting that the enemies who try to interrupt Iran’s cooperation with the agency will not remain silent, the Iranian nuclear chief said, “We will exert every effort to foil the enemies’ malevolent measures.”
“The Islamic Republic has managed [the issue] so far, and it will do so in the future.”
He described his talks with Grossi as “very constructive.”
“It was decided that the agency move forward with its work professionally and independently, and Iran, too, act within the framework of its obligations,” said the AEOI director.
Meanwhile, the AEOI spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said yesterday that improving relations is of high importance for both Iran and the IAEA and the two have been working on resolving mutual affairs in the past two months.
He added that the two sides will not allow other countries to influence or manage the IAEA-Iran relationship.
Kamalvandi also reiterated that IAEA chief’s ongoing visit to Tehran is not related to the activation of the snapback mechanism or any other political issues.
