US Ambassador: Inspectors Must Access Iran's Military Bases

The US Ambassador to the United Nations expressed concern on Friday, September 3, that inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are not allowed access to Iran's military bases. Nikki Haley called for the agency to use all its powers to ensure that Iran is adhering to the nuclear agreement reached in July 2015. According to Reuters, the ambassador, after returning from Vienna, the IAEA's headquarters, stated at a press conference in New York: "I have confidence in the agency, but they are dealing with a country that has a clear history of lying and secret nuclear programs behind it." She added, "We urge the agency to use all its powers and approach from every possible angle" to verify Iran's compliance with the nuclear agreement. Last week, during her visit to Vienna, Haley met with Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the IAEA, and discussed the agency's oversight of Iran's nuclear program and the implementation of the nuclear agreement. Following this meeting, she stated that Washington wants to ensure that the IAEA has sufficient resources and capabilities to verify Iran's nuclear activities. The US ambassador also praised the agency's "credibility, professionalism, and seriousness" in monitoring Iran's activities and verifying them but stated that the agency's reports can only be accurate if its inspectors can access the commitments made by Iran. Haley's visit to the agency and her statements prompted a response from Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who on Wednesday published an open letter to Yukiya Amano and Federica Mogherini. Zarif deemed this visit and the discussions between the US ambassador and Yukiya Amano regarding Iran's commitments as "inconsistent with the JCPOA," claiming that the purpose of this visit was to pressure Iran regarding Tehran's compliance with the nuclear agreement. Haley's trip to Vienna has been described as part of the Trump administration's plan to review the nuclear agreement with Iran, which was reached during Barack Obama's presidency. The new US president had called this agreement a "disaster" during his election campaign. Iranian officials and commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have repeatedly rejected the possibility of inspectors accessing military bases, and according to Reuters, "some officials" have told the news agency that "such an action would have dire consequences." In another part of her remarks, the US ambassador harshly criticized General Michael Berry, the commander of UN forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL), accusing him of turning a blind eye to the secret armament of the Hezbollah group. She stated: "General Berry says there are no weapons for Hezbollah. This is a shameful lack of understanding of what is happening around him." Haley emphasized: "Hezbollah openly boasts about its weapons. They parade in front of television cameras. The UN Secretary-General's report confirms this. For the UNIFIL commander to deny this... there is evidence. This shows that change in UNIFIL is necessary." In this context, Iran considered Nikki Haley's meeting with Yukiya Amano as "a violation of the JCPOA" and protested against her visit to Vienna and questions regarding Parchin. Zarif stated that domestic critics had unrealistic expectations from the JCPOA. Lavrov expressed hope that Iran would not withdraw from the nuclear agreement.