Iran rejects reports of IAEA inspection invitation
Shafaq News- Tehran
Iran's Foreign Ministry denied on Friday reports that Tehran had invited the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to inspect its nuclear facilities, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said.
Quoted by local media outlets, Baqaei stated that IAEA work at facilities would be conditional on the progress of negotiations and any agreements reached, adding that inspections would continue at sites already subject to monitoring, including the Bushehr nuclear power plant.
The arrangement is linked to the preliminary steps required to launch negotiations under Article 13 of the memorandum of understanding. Article 9 requires Iran's nuclear program to remain unchanged throughout the 60 days, while Article 8 stipulates that nuclear talks will be conducted within the same timeframe, Baqaei pointed out.
On June 18, the Associated Press quoted US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff saying during a closed-door briefing that Iran would invite the UN nuclear watchdog to inspect its sites and begin identifying and accounting for Tehran's stockpile of enriched material. He noted that granting IAEA personnel access to Iranian facilities is not included in the deal signed by Washington and Tehran.
Planned US-Iran talks in the Swiss resort of Burgenstock were cancelled before they began after Tehran suspended its delegation's travel, citing ongoing Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon. A White House spokesperson said the negotiations had not been finalized and that the US delegation remained ready to depart at the first available opportunity.
