Tehran warns against anti-Iran resolution by IAEA
“Certainly, the IAEA should not expect the Islamic Republic of Iran to continue its broad and friendly cooperation,” the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Behrouz Kamalvandi, said on state TV when asked how Tehran would respond if the resolution is passed by the IAEA”s board of governors meeting on Monday.
Press TV quoted Kamalvandi as saying that Iran has warned in previous resolutions, but they did not pay attention, and the result was that we increased the production of 60 percent enrichment by 7 times, launched 20 chains, and installed advanced 13th-generation machines.
He said Tehran has prepared a list of measures if such a resolution is passed in the Monday session.
Kamalvandi said part of the measures will be technical, and part of it will concern the nature of Iran’s cooperation with the agency.
“We have repeatedly emphasized that we do not have enrichment above 60 percent and that the momentary increase in enrichment occurred due to technical conditions (such as a decrease in feed in centrifuge machines). This issue was resolved after consideration, but the media and resolutions quietly passed it by,” he stated.
The spokesman stressed that the Europeans are seeking to adopt an anti-Iran resolution in an effort to trigger the snapback mechanism in the coming months.
The Europeans reportedly plan to submit a draft resolution to the IAEA Board of Governors at the meeting. This creates a window to trigger the snapback of all UN sanctions on Tehran under a previous 2015 nuclear deal before the mechanism expires in October.
An IAEA resolution could further complicate nuclear talks between Iran and the United States. Tehran has already pledged to take decisive countermeasures should the snapback mechanism be activated.
In a Friday post on his X account, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned Britain, France, and Germany over their “malign action” of drafting a resolution, calling it a “strategic mistake.”
“After years of good cooperation with the IAEA — resulting in a resolution which shut down malign claims of a ‘possible military dimension’ (PMD) to Iran”s peaceful nuclear program — my country is once again accused of ‘non-compliance’,” Araghchi wrote.
An IAEA report on Saturday accused Tehran of further increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium. Tehran called the report fully biased and politically motivated.
The IAEA report claimed that Iran has sharply increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to up to 60 percent, close to the roughly 90 percent level needed for atomic weapons.
In its quarterly report, the agency said that as of May 17, Iran possesses an estimated 408.6 kilograms of uranium enriched up to 60 percent, marking an increase of 133.8 kilograms since the previous report in February.
Iran has denounced as “political” and unbalanced the report by the United Nations nuclear watchdog, which it said has been drafted under European pressure.
Source:
Iran response to US proposal to be ready soon
According to Mehr News Agency, during a cabinet session on Sunday, Araghchi briefed the government on several key diplomatic matters, including the successful organization of this year’s Hajj pilgrimage and Saudi Arabia’s favorable cooperation in the event.
He also provided updates on the visit of Kazakhstan’s Foreign Minister to Iran and the current status of indirect nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington.
Araghchi emphasized that Iran’s response to the US proposal is forthcoming and will be delivered in due course, reflecting the country’s national interests and strategic considerations.
The US and Iran have held five rounds of nuclear talks since April 12 and are expected to meet again for negotiations aimed at reaching a new agreement. The two countries have been at odds over the level of uranium enrichment.
Last week, the head of the Iranian negotiating team, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Abbas Araghchi, said in a post on X that Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi presented the elements of the US proposal regarding the nuclear agreement to Iran during a short visit to Tehran. He also said that “Iran will respond appropriately based on principles, national interests, and the rights of the Iranian people to the proposal.”
On Monday, Iran”s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei underlined that considering national interests would be the basis of Tehran”s response to the US proposal.”Naturally, any proposal must be carefully reviewed, and the appropriate response must be based on national principles and interests.”
Source: