Iran hindering nuclear watchdogs
U.N. panel chief warns of nation’s harder line
VIENNA — The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog warned Wednesday his inspectors are close to being unable to “guarantee” they know what’s going on at all of Iran’s nuclear sites.
Rafael Mariano Grossi’s words sharply contrasted with the optimistic tone his Iranian hosts offered the day before. They signal the Islamic Republic’s harder line as renewed talks over Tehran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers resume next week.
They also represent a stark alarm for nuclear nonproliferation experts after Grossi’s trip to Tehran produced no breakthrough to restore its ability to fully monitor its program.
The International Atomic Energy Agency’s inspectors remain unable to access surveillance footage and face greater challenges in trying to monitor Tehran’s rapidly growing uranium stockpile.
“Our negotiations have been inconclusive, meaning that we could not finish,” Grossi told reporters in Vienna, where the IAEA is based, after addressing the agency’s board of governors. “I’m not giving up on trying to find some understanding, but in terms of what we were discussing yesterday, we could not conclude an agreement.”
Pressed on whether any progress had been made, Grossi said that “in terms of the substance, no, quite clearly, we were not able to make progress.” However, he said that having got to know the new Iranian officials was “a positive element” and “this will certainly help.”
But he warned: “We are close to the point where I would not be able to guarantee continuity of knowledge.” He did not specify a timeframe, but said a long lack of access to a centrifuge parts production site near the northern city of Karaj “would at some point prevent me from continuing to say that I have an idea of what is going on.”