Trump Warns of 'Lack of Stringency' by Agency in Inspections of Iran's Facilities

Donald Trump, the President of the United States, warned that if he concludes that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is not being stringent enough in its oversight of Iran's nuclear program, the U.S. government will withdraw from the JCPOA agreement. According to the Associated Press, this message from Donald Trump was delivered on Monday, September 18, by Rick Perry, the U.S. Secretary of Energy, at the annual IAEA meeting in Vienna, addressed to the agency's officials. In his open message regarding the nuclear agreement with Iran, the U.S. President stated, 'We will not accept an agreement that is weakly enforced or lacks sufficient oversight.' The United States insists that Iran must open the doors of its 'suspicious' military sites to IAEA inspections, a demand that Tehran strongly opposes. However, in his recent message read by Rick Perry, Donald Trump stated that the issue of the agency's access to Iran's military sites could determine the success or failure of the nuclear agreement. Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the IAEA, who previously stated that the agency's inspections could include military sites in Iran if necessary, emphasized on Monday that Iran remains 'committed to its agreements.' Trump's message to the IAEA follows a report from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz on Sunday, citing an 'Israeli official' described as 'a source knowledgeable about the JCPOA negotiations.' The newspaper wrote that the IAEA, despite receiving information about 'a large number of suspicious sites' in Iran suspected of nuclear activities, either did not visit them or the inspections were delayed. The IAEA later rejected this report, stating in a response to the Israeli network i24 that the claims made in Haaretz regarding the agency's weakness towards Iran are 'incorrect.' Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, who traveled to New York, stated on Sunday night local time to Iranians residing in the U.S., 'The JCPOA will always be alive in the political history of our region and the world, whether the current U.S. government is happy or worried.' According to ISNA, he added, 'The JCPOA is a multilateral agreement supported by a UN Security Council resolution and serves as a reminder to the world that complex international issues can be resolved at the negotiating table.' The Iranian President emphasized, 'Exiting the JCPOA means trampling on the clear political commitment of a government and is not a point of pride for anyone... If the other side wishes to oppose the rights of the nation, the Iranian people will certainly respond appropriately.' Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, also accused the United States of 'audacity and insolence' regarding the JCPOA, warning that 'any wrong move in this matter will be met with a reaction from the Islamic Republic.'