Head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization: Our Process Will Not Change Until Sanctions Are Fully Lifted

The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization stated on the sidelines of a government meeting that "as long as the West does not fulfill its commitments and the sanctions are not fully lifted, we will continue our current process." Mohammad Eslami emphasized that according to the 'Strategic Action' law, because the other side has not fulfilled its commitments, "we also have a return from our commitments, and this is clear." Eslami mentioned that the number of safeguard issues, which was four, has now been reduced to two, and "necessary clarifications have been made, and we have provided a lot of documentation to the Agency." Regarding the possible visit of Grossi to Tehran, he noted that "Mr. Grossi's deputies have come, and our deputy has also gone, and we have had exchanges, and we hope it will happen after the conference." Rafael Grossi, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, reported on Monday, September 11, that "unfortunately, no progress has been made in implementing the activities specified in the joint statement signed in Tehran on March 4." According to Grossi, Iran must provide credible technical explanations for the presence of human-origin uranium particles in Varamin and Torqozabad to the Agency. The Director General emphasized that the remaining safeguard issues stem from Iran's commitments under the 'Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement' and that "the Agency can only guarantee that Iran's nuclear program is entirely peaceful if these issues are resolved." The U.S. representative at the IAEA Board of Governors also called on the Islamic Republic to stop producing uranium enriched to 60%. Laura Holgate described this Iranian action as being in "contradiction" with the behavior of non-nuclear countries that are parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The Islamic Republic has described its nuclear program as "peaceful" and claims full cooperation with the Agency. Holgate, on Tuesday, September 12, during the second day of the Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, criticized the development of Iran's nuclear program beyond the framework of the nuclear agreement, referencing Grossi's recent report. Vedant Patel, Deputy Spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, recently stated that the production of uranium enriched to 60% by the Islamic Republic has "no credible peaceful purpose." The Director General of the IAEA again called for further explanations from the Islamic Republic. Schultz stated that "preventing Iran from producing highly enriched uranium" is an "important action" in the new era of nuclear disarmament. The U.S. representative at the Board of Governors stated that the accumulation of high-enriched uranium does not have a credible peaceful purpose. The Institute for Science and International Security claims that the Islamic Republic has the capability to build a nuclear weapon. Grossi stated that the Islamic Republic must explain the uranium found in Varamin and Torqozabad.