In a joint statement issued on Saturday, Iran’s Atomic Energy Agency (AEOI) and the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the UK, France, Germany and the US have repeatedly violated its obligations under the 2015 nuclear deal, fully known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
The IAEA accused Tehran of strengthening production of highly enriched uranium.
“The repeated unfounded allegations that cannot be relied upon these claims are merely an excuse for Iran’s political manipulation against the Islamic Republic, along with expressions of excessive concern over the issue,” according to a news television.
It added that while not a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the illegal Israeli regime owns nuclear weapons. However, he said Israel is threatening to attack peaceful nuclear facilities in NPT countries.
“Unfortunately, despite his legal liability and repeated demands from the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Agency Director-General has not taken any action despite his repeated demands to condemn these threats,” the statement noted.
In its latest report, the IAEA claimed that Iran has rapidly increased its stockpile of uranium enriched at up to 60%, close to the approximately 90% level required for atomic weapons.
In its quarterly report, the agency said as of May 17, Iran had enriched an estimated 408.6 kilograms of uranium by up to 60%, showing an increase of 133.8 kilograms since the previous report in February.
The total amount of Iran’s enriched uranium is more than 45 times the limit approved in the 2015 contract (formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Action Plan) is estimated at 9,247.6 kilograms, according to the report.
In a joint statement, Iran expressed regret over the publication of the politically motivated report and expressed explicit protest against its content.
The IAEA report emphasized that it exceeds the responsibility of the agency’s directors and is inconsistent with the professional requirements of international organizations, including the principle of neutrality.
The statement criticized the IAEA for not reflecting the true level of comprehensive cooperation between Iran and the agency.
“In this report, the (IAEA) Director-General reiterated previous bias and unfounded accusations by widely using forged documents provided by the Zionist regime.”
It also stated the IAEA’s claims about Iran’s undeclared activities and sites dating back to decades.
The IAEA report claims that Iran had previously carried out secret nuclear activities.
The Iranian joint statement reiterated Tehran’s continued cooperation with the IAEA within the framework of a comprehensive safeguard agreement, saying the latest report by the UN Nuclear Agency contains references to small issues unrelated to the protection agreement.
Iran has warned against political exploitation of the contents of the IAEA report, saying it has once again emphasized that nuclear weapons have no room for Iran’s defensive doctrine in Iran’s defensive orders, based on religious orders by the leaders of the Islamic Revolution.
It also reiterated that there is no prohibition or restriction on Iran’s inherent undeniable right to profit from nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, based on the fundamental principles of international law.
“Iran’s enrichment programme is intended for peaceful purposes only, under the full supervision of the agency, fully transparent and consistent with the comprehensive safeguard agreement,” the statement emphasized.
It added that if politicization and hypocrisy were not on the agenda of the European troika (France, Germany, UK), the IAEA would not have prepared such “unfair and repetitive” reports.
In conclusion, Iran has issued warnings to certain countries seeking to leverage its transparency and trust building approach in its authorities’ verification activities or current reporting during governor meetings.
“Iran will take appropriate measures in response to such an approach to protecting the rights and legitimate interests of the state, and the outcomes and liability fall within those countries,” he pointed out.
The latest IAEA report is as Iran and the United States are engaged in indirect negotiations mediated by Oman since April to find an alternative to the 2015 nuclear agreement.
Iran demonstrated the world the peaceful nature of its nuclear program by signing a landmark deal with six world powers in 2015.
The JCPOA was derailed by the US in 2018. The US unilaterally came out of the outs and launched a so-called campaign of maximum pressure on Iran.
Iran is now guaranteeing that the US will remove all sanctions and not violate any potential new deals again.
MNA