Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, has confirmed that a senior official from the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog will arrive in Tehran on Monday for discussions, though there are no plans for any nuclear site inspections.
The visit comes in the aftermath of Israel’s first military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities during a 12-day conflict in June.
Since then, inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency have been unable to gain access to the sites, despite repeated assurances from IAEA chief Rafael Grossi that resuming inspections remains a top priority.
Tehran has accused the agency of playing a role in enabling the attacks by releasing a highly critical report on May 31, which prompted the IAEA’s 35-member Board of Governors to declare Iran in violation of its nuclear non-proliferation commitments.
Iran insists it is not pursuing nuclear weapons and maintains its adherence to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
“Negotiations with the IAEA will be held tomorrow to determine a framework for cooperation,” Araghchi stated on his Telegram account. “A Deputy Director General of Grossi will come to Tehran tomorrow, while there are no plans to visit any nuclear sites until we reach a framework.”
In July, Iran implemented a parliamentary law suspending certain levels of cooperation with the IAEA.
Under this legislation, any future inspections of its nuclear facilities will require explicit approval from the country’s Supreme National Security Council.