Iran rejects 'zero enrichment' condition, urges IAEA to act independently

Iran has ruled out the U.S.-EU demand for a halt in its civilian nuclear program as an “impossible” pre-condition to restart nuclear negotiations.

The oil rich nation also called on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to be “independent and professional” in the performance of its duties

Spokesman of Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi said that it is not impossible to resume cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog but added it is a “complicated technical” issue.

“It requires new protocols on inspection of the nuclear sites bombed by Israel and US last June,” he said in an interview with ISNA news agency regarding Iran’s condition for renewed monitoring of its sites after they were suspended by the country’s parliamentary legislation.

“Iran’s relations with the IAEA changed after our nuclear facilities under UN safeguards were attacked last June while we were committed to our international obligations.” Kamalvandi said.

Any inspection of Iran’s nuclear sites must carefully balance transparency with national security concerns.” He added.

According to the spokesman, Iran maintained communication with the IAEA during the war by sending multiple reports detailing the attacks on its nuclear sites, but it was the agency which failed to condemn the attacks, effectively serving as a green light for the invasion.

Kamalvandi also said Iran is ready to engage with the western countries if they have “legitimate concerns” but ruled out “zero enrichment” as an impractical demand to restart the negotiations.

Earlier last week, he stressed that the safeguards agreement is unfit for wartime and said, “IAEA’s current safeguards agreement requires legal revision because it is inadequate in light of the circumstances following the 12‑day war”.

Kamalvandi criticised IAEA’s “political and untechnical” approach, arguing the agency has complicated prospects of cooperation and also underscored the need for mechanisms to prevent misuse of sensitive information.

“Iran’s nuclear file has, from its inception, been shaped more by political pressures than by technical assessments, creating persistent challenges for both Iran and international monitoring bodies,” he told IRNA news agency.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also urged IAEA and its chief Rafael Grossi to act “independently” and avoid being motivated by political interests of western countries in dealing with Iran’s nuclear program.

He made the remarks in an exclusive interview with Russia Today TV program Worlds Apart, during his visit to Moscow last week which was aired on Sunday.

When asked about Tehran’s relations with IAEA in the wake of the US-Israel air raids on Iran’s civilian nuclear facilities under UN safeguards, he said Iran is committed to its obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

However, Araghchi was quick to add that the UN nuclear watchdog does not have any procedure on inspection of the safeguarded bombed sites.

“We are ready for a fair and balanced (nuclear) deal but will not accept diktats,” he added referring to U.S. and EU pre-conditions.

Araghchi also said that it had been months since he was last in contact with the U.S. Middle East envoy and nuclear negotiator Steve Witkoff because Iran concluded that Washington is “not prepared for a fair deal”.

The minister also said he held five rounds of mediated nuclear talks with Witkoff since April and they were ready to hold the sixth round in mid-June when Israel and the Trump-led administration bombed Iran’s nuclear sites.

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Responding to a question about likely new attacks by U.S. and Israel, Araghchi said while Iran “does not welcome a war, it is totally prepared for it”.

“The best thing to do to prevent a war is to be prepared for it, he said, “It is why we have strengthened our defensive might following the war”.

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