Disagreement Between the U.S. and Three European Countries on Confronting Iran at the Agency

On Friday, June 4, Reuters reported, citing diplomats, that the United States and three European countries are at odds over how to confront Iran by pursuing a resolution against the country at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors. Reuters states that pursuing such a resolution could escalate tensions. The IAEA Board last issued a resolution in November 2022, asking the Islamic Republic to cooperate and clarify its position regarding the origin of uranium particles discovered at three undeclared sites. Grossi: The death of Raisi delayed negotiations between Iran and the IAEA. The next Board meeting is scheduled for ten days later, on June 14. The agenda includes the Islamic Republic's nuclear program and the latest report from Rafael Grossi, the Director General of the IAEA. A senior European diplomat stated, "Working with Iran is very difficult and the level of violations is unprecedented... no reduction in their (nuclear) program has been observed, and Iran has shown no real goodwill to cooperate with the IAEA." This senior European diplomat added that all existing signs indicate a warning status. The IAEA faces a range of challenges in verifying Iran's nuclear program, from Tehran's obstruction of many of the agency's most experienced experts from entering the country to Iran's continued disregard for the agency's requests for explanations regarding the uranium traces found at undeclared sites, alongside a significant increase in Iran's enriched uranium stockpile. Rafael Grossi, the Director General of the IAEA, stated that Iran's stock of 60% enriched uranium has reached 140 kilograms, with an additional 9 kilograms being added each month. France, Britain, and Germany have previously emphasized that "Iran has no acceptable civilian justification for its 20% and 60% enrichment, and producing enriched uranium at this level is unprecedented for a country that does not have a weapons program." Meanwhile, Iran claims it is not pursuing nuclear weapons and that its nuclear program is entirely peaceful. Reuters notes that the U.S. has shown no inclination to pursue another resolution against Iran in recent IAEA Board meetings. According to this report, the three European powers—France, Britain, and Germany—failed to reach an agreement with the U.S. in March of this year regarding the necessity of issuing a resolution against Iran. Reuters adds that U.S. officials cite the upcoming presidential elections as one reason for the country's reluctance to pursue such an approach. Another senior European diplomat has stated that these three European countries have "prepared a resolution." Other senior European diplomats also indicate that France, Britain, and Germany have drafted a resolution but have not yet presented it to the Board members. The Director General of the IAEA stated on May 22 that the death of Ebrahim Raisi, the President of Iran, has delayed nuclear negotiations aimed at improving Iran's cooperation with the agency. Rafael Grossi visited Iran on May 7 and discussed how to cooperate with the Islamic Republic. After returning from Tehran, he said that the parties had reached a "common understanding" and that Iran had indicated it was ready to work on specific actions. He also mentioned that there are three categories of issues: inspections, remaining issues, and voluntary actions that Iran can undertake.