Iraqi: Access to Scientists and Military Centers is Not on the Agenda

A senior member of Iran's nuclear negotiation team stated that the remarks of the Supreme Leader regarding the prohibition of access to Iran's nuclear scientists and visits to military sites have been communicated to the 'opposing parties' and these issues are 'not on the agenda at all.' According to IRIB news agency, Abbas Araqchi announced on Friday, June 8, that the idea of 'managed access' to Iran's military sites 'in Tehran' has not been agreed upon. Araqchi referred to a 'list of solutions' to address the possible military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program (PMD) and noted, 'One solution proposed by the other side was to specify a list of individuals and centers so that the agency could have managed access to them.' He explained that in 'managed access,' inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would not be allowed to gather information from the 'surrounding environment' and would operate within 'a very specific area.' He added, 'This proposal was not accepted in Tehran; we are working on other ideas and have clearly communicated this to the other side.' Araqchi also mentioned on Tuesday evening, June 4, without going into details, that 'a series of solutions' for addressing the possible military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program have 'not been accepted in Tehran.' These statements come as he and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif have repeatedly discussed 'managed access' to Iran's military sites based on the Additional Protocol, clarifying that 'access' refers not to inspections but to 'environmental sampling.' Araqchi has also recently indicated that the agreement with the P5+1 group may be nullified if the Additional Protocol is not accepted. However, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ruled out interviews with Iran's nuclear scientists and inspections of military sites, with a commander of the Revolutionary Guard describing inspections of these sites 'under any title' as 'espionage.' In support of the Supreme Leader's remarks, a rally titled 'We Will Not Allow It' was held on Thursday, featuring speeches from critics of Iran's nuclear negotiation team in Mashhad, with a similar rally planned for Saturday in Qom. This comes despite statements from Mohammad Javad Zarif and media reports that in the previous Iranian administration, agency officials interviewed Iran's nuclear scientists. Araqchi emphasized, 'What was stated by the Supreme Leader regarding the prohibition of access to individuals for interviews and the prohibition of inspections or visits to military sites is our very serious and decisive directive, which has been fully communicated to the opposing parties that this is not on our agenda at all.' He added, 'We are working on alternative solutions that address security concerns and existing issues... If we can reach solutions, we will certainly implement them; otherwise, we will continue negotiations until we reach an acceptable solution.' Araqchi's statements come as Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the IAEA, Laurent Fabius, the French Foreign Minister, and several U.S. officials have emphasized that acceptance of visits to Iran's military sites must be part of the final agreement between Iran and the P5+1.