Politics

Iran grants international inspectors access to two suspicious nuclear sites

Tehran, Aug 26 (efe-epa).- The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi was in Tehran on Wednesday where he secured a green-light from Iranian officials to inspect two sites suspected of having hosted secretive nuclear activities.

After months of failing to reach a deal, Iran’s nuclear agency AEOI and the the United Nations nuclear watchdog released a joint statement committing to “further reinforce their cooperation and enhance mutual trust.”

Traces of fissile materials were found at the two sites in question, which could come from undeclared nuclear experiments conducted 15 years ago.

Iran had rejected the inspections at the facilities, located in the central province of Isfahan and near Tehran, claiming that the information had come from the Israeli secret services was neither valid nor verifiable.

“After intensive bilateral consultations, Iran and the IAEA reached an agreement on the resolution of the safeguards implementation issues specified by the IAEA, in good faith,” the statement said.

“In this regard, Iran is voluntarily providing the IAEA with access to the two locations specified by the IAEA and facilitating the IAEA verification activities to resolve these issues.”

Regular nuclear inspections formed part of Iran’s international nuclear deal in 2015, which saw Tehran trade in much of its atomic program for an easing of international sanctions.

President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the pact in 2018, leaving behind the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia and China, threatened to collapse the historic deal signed by his predecessor Barack Obama.

Iranian authorities have since expressed their concerns over Washington’s supposed influence over the international atomic agency.

The statement continued: “Both sides recognize the independence, impartiality and professionalism of the IAEA continue to be essential in the fulfilment of its verification activities.”

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