Salehi: Some Major Banks Have Not Yet Cooperated with Us

Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, stated on Monday, November 15, that he is a critic of the American side's breaches of commitment (in non-technical areas), and one of the "breaches of commitment by the U.S." was the visa issuance for those traveling to Iran. Salehi announced this to the Tasnim news agency, stating that this issue is an obstacle to cooperation, "because previously European professors easily came to Iran and Iranian and European universities had good relations, but now these professors either do not come to Iran or are cautious." He added, "I have mentioned this to my counterpart, and he said that we are working hard to perhaps exempt the scientific aspects." Officials of the Islamic Republic accuse the United States of not fulfilling all its commitments under the nuclear agreement. Meanwhile, Barack Obama, the U.S. President, emphasized that the United States and global powers have "fulfilled all their commitments to lift sanctions related to Iran's nuclear program." John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State, also stated that the U.S. has acted "beyond its commitments." The second case of "American breaches of commitment," according to the head of the Atomic Energy Organization, is the lack of cooperation from banks. He pointed out: "Some major banks have not yet cooperated with us." According to Salehi, projects worth $100 to $200 million are progressing with small banks, but a multi-billion dollar project, which includes most of Iran's large projects, requires substantial credit that small banks cannot provide and needs investment from large banks. He added: "Europeans want to create a new atmosphere and are pressuring the U.S. in their own way, and the Americans have announced that they have told banks to cooperate with us. However, apparently, these statements have not yet been effective." On October 27, Salehi stated at a public meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna that "some of the sanctions that were supposed to be lifted according to the nuclear agreement with six global powers remain in place" and said: "Iran has adhered to all its commitments under the JCPOA, but the comprehensive and rapid lifting of all sanctions that were supposed to be lifted has not yet occurred." The head of the Atomic Energy Organization also spoke about the modernization of the Arak heavy water reactor, saying: "The JCPOA states that the owner (custodian) of the project is Iran, which is a very important point," and added that a special working group consisting of Iran, China, and the U.S. is expected to consult scientifically and technically regarding the modernization of this reactor. Salehi told Tasnim: "In the JCPOA, it was said that 'the Arak reactor produces ten kilograms of plutonium per year, which can be used for non-peaceful purposes.' We said we would modernize it so that plutonium production would be reduced to less than one kilogram to alleviate their unfounded concerns." According to Salehi, in this new reactor, various radioisotopes can be produced, which was impossible in the previous reactor. For example, cobalt, which is a strategic product, can be easily produced. He said: "It has been exempted in the JCPOA that if, for any reason, the JCPOA is halted, the Arak reactor project will continue." Regarding the Fordow facility, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization stated: "His negotiations were not unilateral so that he could negotiate with the counterpart as he wishes." Salehi added: "In the Fordow issue, it has been requested that the number of active centrifuges be limited from 9,400 to 6,100." He further added: "In exchange for limiting the number of centrifuges within the framework of the JCPOA, Iran has the right to produce stable isotopes and to enhance its knowledge in the field of centrifuges through this." The nuclear agreement between Tehran and the P5+1 group was implemented in January 2016, and since then, Iran has turned off many of its centrifuges in exchange for the lifting of a significant portion of international sanctions. According to Salehi, the Iranian negotiating party in the nuclear talks based its discussions on what he called the "ambiguous and imprecise concept of nuclear breakout time," but Iran did not accept this criterion and instead included the issue of producing stable isotopes in the JCPOA. The head of the Atomic Energy Organization regarding "leaks of information from nuclear facilities in world media" stated: "The Agency has written a letter and said that it did not leak information, but who published it and for what purpose, no one knows." He added: "What was published from confidential documents in Western publications has been in favor of Iran." The government of Hassan Rouhani and members of the nuclear negotiating team have been heavily targeted by hardline conservatives since the signing of the nuclear agreement and its implementation plan known as the JCPOA over the past year.