IAEA chief Rafael Grossi is expected to hold talks with Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, on how to improve Iran’s cooperation with his agency by November, Reuters reports.
With nuclear diplomacy largely stalled between Iran’s presidential election and the U.S. election on Nov. 5, Grossi said he wanted to make real progress soon.
Asked for clarification at a press conference whether he would do so before or after the US election, he replied: “No, I hope it will be before.”
Relations between Iran and the IAEA are complicated by several long-standing problems, including Tehran’s exclusion of uranium enrichment experts from the inspection team and its failure for decades to explain traces of uranium found at undeclared sites.
IAEA board resolutions ordering Iran to urgently cooperate in the investigation into traces of uranium and calling on it to lift the ban on inspectors made little difference, and IAEA quarterly reports published by Reuters on August 29 showed no progress.
It should be noted that Iran has stepped up nuclear work since 2019, after then-US President Donald Trump abandoned a deal reached under his predecessor Barack Obama, under which Iran agreed to restrictions on its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions. Western diplomats say there are plans to negotiate new restrictions if Democrat Kamala Harris wins the election.
