WANA (Jun 11) – Six countries—China, Russia, Belarus, Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua—issued a joint statement in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s position at the meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors, under agenda item 6(c) on the “Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement with the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

Full text summary:

 

We recall Iran’s longstanding commitment to nuclear non-proliferation as a member of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and emphasize that all other NPT members must fully respect Iran’s right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

 

We welcome Director General Grossi’s visit to Tehran on April 16, 2025, and acknowledge the continued cooperation and engagement between Iran and the IAEA Secretariat.

 

We also welcome the Beijing joint statement of March 14, 2025, issued by China, Russia, and Iran, which reaffirmed that political and diplomatic engagement based on mutual respect is the only viable path forward. It stressed the need for all countries to refrain from actions that would compromise the technical, objective, and impartial work of the IAEA.

 

Regarding the Director General’s report (GOV/2025/25), we underline that the so-called “updated and comprehensive assessment” in that report was not initiated by the Director General himself, but was mandated by a politically-motivated, non-consensus resolution adopted at the November 2024 Board of Governors meeting.

 

The report shows that the IAEA continues to conduct extensive verification activities in Iran in line with its nuclear fuel cycle and operations, and that Iran continues its cooperation. It is clear from the report that all outstanding safeguards issues relate to pre-2003 activities. We recall that the IAEA Board decided to close all such past and present issues in its December 2015 resolution (GOV/2015/72).

 

We note that both Iran and the Secretariat have made efforts to clarify the remaining issues. We hope that this engagement continues based on professionalism, impartiality, and without political pressure or third-party interference.

 

The Secretariat must consider and analyze the evidence and reasoning provided by Iran in good faith and in pursuit of resolution. In this regard, we draw attention to Iran’s explanatory note, published as INFCIRC/1297, which deserves serious consideration by the Secretariat and all IAEA Member States.

 

On the Draft Resolution by the U.S., France, Germany, and the U.K.:

 

We underscore that the Director General’s report does not state that Iran is in non-compliance with its Safeguards Agreement obligations. It also does not claim that the Agency is unable to verify the non-diversion of nuclear material. Moreover, the Director General does not request any action by the Board of Governors.

 

Thus, the allegations in the draft resolution regarding Iran’s alleged non-compliance and the supposed inability of the Agency are baseless and legally unfounded.

 

We caution that if the Board adopts conclusions based on these misleading claims, it may risk pushing the matter outside the IAEA framework. In this context, we stress that any hasty referral to the UN Security Council will neither build trust nor resolve the differences among the parties involved.

 

Given all this, we call on all IAEA Member States to play a constructive role and to resist any attempt to politicize safeguards issues. We urge all responsible Member States not to support the draft resolution.

 

On the JCPOA and UNSCR 2231:

 

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), agreed in 2015 and endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2231, represents the outcome of over a decade of diplomatic effort. The unilateral withdrawal of the United States from the JCPOA is the primary cause of the current situation.

 

We strongly believe that UNSC Resolution 2231 remains valid and must be implemented by all countries. As the JCPOA’s Termination Day approaches, all efforts must align with Resolution 2231 to ensure that the international community’s investment in this agreement is not casually disregarded.

 

We call on the three European countries, the EU, and the United States to fully implement all provisions of Resolution 2231, including its timeline.