UN nuclear watchdog board passes resolution chiding Iran
VIENNA—The UN nuclear watchdog’s board of governors passed a resolution chiding Iran’s poor cooperation with the agency after hours of heated exchanges, diplomats told AFP late on Thursday, a move Tehran called “politically motivated.”
The censure motion brought by Britain, France, Germany and the United States at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) 35-nation board follows a similar one in June. But it comes as tensions run high over Iran’s atomic program, with critics fearing that Tehran is attempting to develop a nuclear weapon—a claim the Islamic Republic has repeatedly denied.
The resolution—which China, Russia and Burkina Faso voted against—was carried by 19 votes in favor, with 12 abstentions and Venezuela not participating, two diplomats told AFP.
Ahead of the vote on Thursday night, the United States and its European allies sought to rally support for their resolution by denouncing Iran. In its national statement to the board, Washington said that Tehran’s nuclear activities are “deeply troubling.”
London, Paris and Berlin in a joint statement drew attention to the “threat” Iran’s nuclear program posed “to international security,” stressing that it now had enough highly enriched uranium for four nuclear weapons.
In a first reaction after the vote, Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA, Mohsen Naziri Asl, told AFP that the resolution was “politically motivated,” citing its “low support” compared to previous censures.
Confidential
The confidential resolution seen by AFP says it is “essential and urgent” for Iran to “act to fulfil its legal obligations.”
The text also calls on Tehran to provide “technically credible explanations” for the presence of uranium particles found at two undeclared locations in Iran. Moreover, Western powers are asking for a “comprehensive report” to be issued by the IAEA on Iran’s nuclear efforts “at the latest” by spring 2025.
Since 2021, Tehran has significantly decreased its cooperation with the agency by deactivating surveillance devices to monitor the nuclear program and barring UN inspectors. At the same time, Iran has rapidly ramped up its nuclear activities, including by increasing its stockpiles of enriched uranium.
That has heightened fears that Tehran might be seeking to develop a nuclear weapon, which it denies. The resolution comes just as IAEA head Rafael Grossi returned from a trip to Tehran last week.
During the visit, Iran agreed to an IAEA demand to cap its sensitive stock of near weapons-grade uranium enriched up to 60-percent purity.
“This is a concrete step in the right direction,” Grossi told reporters Wednesday, saying it was “the first time” Iran had made such a commitment since it started breaking away from its obligations under the nuclear deal.
