TEHRAN, July 4: The International Atomic Energy Agency announced its official exit from Iran today, stating that its team of inspectors had safely departed from the country to return to its headquarters in Vienna, after Tehran suspended cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, reports Iran International.
In a statement on X, the agency said Director General Rafael Grossi had “reiterated the crucial importance” of holding talks with Iranian authorities to resume the IAEA’s “indispensable” monitoring and verification work “as soon as possible.”
The inspectors had remained in Tehran throughout the 12-day conflict between Iran and Israel, and provided details on the damage to the centrifuges in Iran’s nuclear sites from Israeli and later US airstrikes.
After the 12-day war, the IAEA had received widespread condemnation from Iran which accused the body of having vested political interests, peddling the Western narrative, being anti-Iran, and not maintaining neutrality and impartiality in its assessments.
Lawmakers and politicians even accused the IAEA of helping Israel in its attacks by sharing sensitive data, allowing for precision targeting.
Due to the increasingly anti-IAEA sentiments in the country, with some officials, including Grossi receiving death threats from groups and Islamic clerics, all members were evacuated due to safety concerns and transported on road to Armenia, in coordination with Iranian authorities.
The agency had reportedly been trying to arrange the exit for several days and chose ground transport to reduce visibility and risk.
The move comes after weeks of rising tensions between Tehran and the UN nuclear watchdog.
On July 2, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian enacted a law requiring the suspension of cooperation under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty’s safeguards agreement unless Iran’s demands for security guarantees are met.
While Iran hasn’t completely ruled out cooperation with the UN-body, according to Foreign Minister Abbass Araghchi, it will be coordinated with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, severely limiting its operations.(UNI)
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