IAEA Calls for Acceleration of Cooperation with Iran

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) emphasized the need to "accelerate the current process of cooperation" between the organization and the Islamic Republic in a statement released on Tuesday, March 9, following the conclusion of its delegation's visit to Tehran. On the morning of Tuesday, March 9, a high-level IAEA delegation led by Tero Varjoranta, the agency's deputy director, along with Massimo Aparo, head of safeguards, spoke to reporters at Vienna airport after returning from Tehran. Mr. Varjoranta also reported "progress" in negotiations with Iran, which are ongoing alongside the Islamic Republic's talks with the P5+1 group. The statement published on the official website of this UN agency also announced the timing of the next meeting and negotiations between Iran and the IAEA in mid-April. Reuters quoted a senior IAEA official stating that the next round of negotiations would again take place in Tehran. The IAEA's official statement noted that the high-level delegation and Iranian officials exchanged information regarding "two remaining practical actions" on Tuesday. In this context, Behrouz Kamalvandi, deputy and spokesperson for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, previously stated that during this visit, two recent issues from the third phase of cooperation between Iran and the IAEA would be pursued. According to the spokesperson, one of the two discussion points was regarding "the provision of agreed relevant information and explanations related to the article published in Iran concerning neutron transport and the related modeling and calculations, and the alleged use of these in compressed materials." Alongside its numerous inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities, the IAEA is also demanding that Tehran respond to allegations regarding the Islamic Republic's previous potential efforts to "build a nuclear bomb." The Islamic Republic of Iran has denied these allegations, and the agency's investigations in this regard were halted after some progress last year, with the last technical meeting on this issue held in November. The IAEA's efforts to verify the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program are part of broader trust-building measures that could also assist the negotiation process between Iran and Western powers. In this context, the IAEA team is set to visit Tehran next week.