Today November 20, 2025, 06:37 PM
Today November 20, 2025, 06:37 PM
By STEPHANIE LIECHTENSTEIN
VIENNA (AP) â The U.N. atomic watchdog on Thursday demanded that Iran fully cooperate with the agency and provide âprecise informationâ about its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium, as well as grant its inspectors access to Iranian nuclear sites.
The development sets the stage for a likely further escalation between the U.N. nuclear agency and Iran, which has reacted strongly to similar moves by the watchdog in the past.
Nineteen countries on the International Atomic Energy Agencyâs 35-member board of governors voted for the resolution at the IAEAâs headquarters in Vienna, according to diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the outcome of the closed-doors vote.
Russia, China and Niger opposed it, while 12 countries abstained and one did not vote.
The resolution â put forward by France, the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States â says Iran must provide the IAEA with the latest information on its nuclear stockpile, âwithout delay.â A draft was seen by The Associated Press.
Since Israel and the United States struck Iranâs nuclear sites during the 12-day war in June, Iran has not given IAEA inspectors access to nuclear sites that were affected by the strikes â even though Tehran is legally obliged to cooperate with the watchdog under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
The agency also has been unable to verify the status of the stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium since the June bombing, according to a confidential IAEA report seen by the AP last week.
That stockpile could allow Iran to build as many as 10 nuclear bombs, should it decide to weaponize its program, IAEA director general Rafael Grossi warned in a recent interview with the AP. He added that it doesnât mean that Iran has such a weapon.
Such highly enriched nuclear material should normally be verified every month, according to the IAEAâs guidelines.
Talking to reporters outside the IAEA boardroom, Iranâs Ambassador to the IAEA Reza Najafi denounced Thursdayâs resolution and said that it was designed to âexert undue pressure on Iranâ and propagate a âfalse and misleading narrative of the present situation.â
He described the authors of the resolution as âdeaf and visionlessâ and said that they maintain âan arrogant and self-assured postureâ by presuming that Iran is âobliged to continue its routine cooperation with the agency even under bombardment.â
Najafi said that Iran considers the current situation âfar from normal,â given that safeguarded facilities in Iran that contain âdangerous nuclear materialâ have been attacked.
Najafi said that Iran is âfully prepared for meaningful and constructive engagementâ but at present, âthe authors of resolutions have chosen a different course, under the mistaken belief that the pressure and threat will yield results.â
Responding to questions from journalist, Najafi said Iran will announce its response at a later stage.
Iran suspended all cooperation with the IAEA after the war with Israel. Grossi then reached an agreement with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Cairo in early September to resume inspections.
But later that month, the U.N. reimposed crushing sanctions on Iran via the so-called snapback mechanism contained in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, drawing an angry response from Tehran and leading it to halt implementation of the Cairo agreement.
The snapback mechanism reactivated six U.N. Security Council resolutions that address Iranâs nuclear and ballistic missile program, reinstate economic sanctions against Iran and contain other restrictions, such as halting all uranium enrichment.
Thursdayâs resolution instructed Grossi to report on the implementation of the reinstated restrictions. It also requested that he ensure his reporting âincludes information on the verification of Iranâs uranium stockpile, including the locations, quantities, chemical forms, and enrichment levels, and the inventories of centrifuges and related equipment.â
Iran has long insisted its program is peaceful, but the IAEA and Western nations say Tehran had an organized nuclear weapons program up until 2003.
Thursdayâs resolution demanded that Iran âacts strictly in accordanceâ with the so-called Additional Protocol that it signed in 2003 but never ratified.
That protocol grants more powers and oversight to the IAEA, especially when it comes to conducting snap inspections at undeclared nuclear sites.
Iran suspended its implementation of the Additional Protocol in 2021 in response to the United Statesâ withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal that lifted economic sanctions in exchange for restrictions on Iranâs nuclear program.
