Speaking at the seasonal meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors, Grossi said that according to the agreement the Agency enables “the Agency to resume its full verification and monitoring of Iran’s nuclear-related commitments under the JCPOA if and when Iran resumes its implementation of those commitments.”
Saying that since the previous quarterly report, 11 reports have been issued containing updates on Iran’s nuclear activities, he added, “On 15 February 2021, Iran informed the Agency that Iran would ‘stop the implementation of voluntary transparency measures as envisaged in the JCPOA, as of February 23, 2021".
The IAEA chief said that as stated before, "Stopping or limiting the Agency's verification and monitoring activities at this stage would have a serious impact on the Agency's ability to report on the implementation of Iran's commitments."
He said that on his visit to Iran, he had discussions with Vice-President Ali Akbar Salehi and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif "to find a mutually agreeable solution for the Agency to continue essential verification activities".
The terms of the "temporary technical understanding" with Iran are attached to the report, he said, reiterating that the agreement is "compatible with Iranian law".
The seasonal meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors started online behind closed doors with the presence of 35 member states. The meeting includes the issue of Iran and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
After the US withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018 and restored sanctions on Iran, Tehran waited for a year to provide the three European signatories of the deal with an opportunity to carry out their commitments. Following their failure to do so, Tehran decided to reduce commitments in several steps with intervals, announcing that the steps are all reversible if the sanctions are removed.
On February 23, Iran stopped the voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol, in compliance with a Majlis (Parliament) Law. However, some necessary inspections are underway within the framework of Safeguards Agreements up to the next three months.
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