Araghchi to Meet with IAEA Chief Grossi in New York
WANA (Sep 22) – Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi announced on Monday that he will meet today with Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Speaking to reporters upon his arrival in New York to attend the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, Araghchi confirmed that a meeting with Grossi is on his schedule.
“Today I will have several bilateral meetings and sessions… one of them will be with Mr. Rafael Grossi, the IAEA Director General, who will meet with me. We will discuss the latest status of Iran’s nuclear program, the cooperation agreement between Iran and the Agency, as well as the snapback process that has been triggered at the UN Security Council,” Araghchi said.
He reiterated that any activation of the snapback mechanism would effectively nullify Iran’s agreement with the IAEA: “In the press conference after signing the agreement with the Agency, and in other statements, we made it clear that if the snapback is ultimately carried out, the agreement with the Agency will also lose its validity.”
The foreign minister explained: “Our cooperation agreement with the Agency was reached under the new circumstances that followed the aggression against Iran. If the snapback proceeds, then we will once again face a new situation. Should the destructive move by the three European countries at the Security Council be implemented, Iran will respond accordingly, and naturally we will enter a new phase with the Agency, the shape of which is not yet clear. Today, we will discuss the details of these matters.”
Grossi had earlier stressed that diplomatic efforts to resolve disputes over Iran’s nuclear program are currently in “a very difficult phase.”
Meeting between Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Badr Abdelatty, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt. Social media / WANA News Agency
