IAEA chief demands access to Iran’s nuclear sites

PanARMENIAN.Net - Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi has called for immediate access to Iran’s nuclear facilities to verify its enriched uranium reserves. “We must allow inspectors to return and conduct an inventory of uranium stocks, particularly the 400 kilograms enriched to 60 percent,” he said on June 23 during an emergency IAEA meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, according to AFP.

Grossi noted that on June 13, the day Israeli airstrikes began, Iranian authorities informed the IAEA via letter that “special measures had been implemented to protect nuclear equipment and materials.” Satellite images now show “craters” at one of Iran’s three nuclear sites — Fordow. Given the type of explosives used and “the sensitivity of centrifuges to vibrations,” Grossi emphasized, major damage is to be expected. However, he added, no body — including the IAEA — is currently able to fully assess the extent of the destruction.

The IAEA reported that no radiation increase had been detected following the recent U.S. strikes on Iranian sites. “After the attacks on three nuclear facilities in Iran, including Fordow, the IAEA can confirm that no increase in radiation levels has been detected outside the sites,” read the agency’s statement released the day before. Similar conclusions were shared by Saudi Arabia’s Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Commission and Iran’s Nuclear Safety Center.

Speaking to Sky News on June 18, Grossi said that prior to the U.S. strikes, the IAEA had found no evidence that Iran was actively pursuing nuclear weapons. “Based on our findings, we cannot assert that there are currently systematic efforts in Iran to produce nuclear weapons,” he said.

According to Grossi, the IAEA report — heavily cited by Israel — does state that Iran enriches uranium to 60 percent, making it the only country in the world to do so, which is cause for concern. “But we did not say they are building or producing nuclear weapons,” he stressed.

The military escalation between the U.S., Israel, and Iran began on June 13, when Israel announced it was launching strikes to halt Iran’s “advanced nuclear program.” Since then, Israeli forces have bombed military and nuclear targets across Iran. In retaliation, Iran has launched missiles and drones at Israeli territory.

On the night of June 22, U.S. forces entered the conflict with airstrikes on three critical sites of Iran’s nuclear program — Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. U.S. President Donald Trump stated in a national address that these key uranium enrichment facilities were “completely destroyed.”

According to Iranian state broadcaster deputy director Hassan Abedini, Iranian authorities had previously evacuated all three sites. “The enriched uranium reserves had been removed from the nuclear centers, and there were no remaining materials that, if hit, could cause radiation or harm our fellow citizens,” he said.