WANA (Jul 24) – A spokesperson for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has responded to reports about an upcoming visit by a technical delegation to Iran.

 

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, announced Thursday that Tehran has agreed to host the IAEA team within the next two to three weeks. However, the team will not be granted access to the country’s nuclear facilities.

 

Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi had declared that Iran’s cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog would not proceed as it did in the past, citing recent U.S. and Israeli actions allegedly based on a report by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.

 

Responding to a question about the planned visit, an IAEA spokesperson declined to comment directly. Nevertheless, the spokesperson reiterated that the Director General has emphasized the importance of reaching a diplomatic solution grounded in the agency’s indispensable verification and monitoring efforts.

 

According to recent reports, European foreign ministers conveyed to their Iranian counterpart last week that if Tehran resumes talks with the United States and cooperates with the IAEA, they might delay activating the so-called “snapback” mechanism, which would reimpose UN sanctions.

 

Araghchi has previously accused the United States of undermining diplomacy by launching attacks on Iran during negotiations. He stressed that Washington must provide guarantees to avoid similar incidents if talks are revived.

 

France, Germany, and the UK—three signatories of the 2015 nuclear deal—have warned that if no progress is made toward a new agreement, they may reintroduce UN sanctions by the end of August.

 

In response, Iran has warned that it may consider measures such as withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if Western powers proceed with sanctions.