The International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran said today they had agreed to "further reinforce their cooperation and enhance mutual trust" to facilitate the full implementation of Iran’s Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement and the Additional Protocol thereto, which has been provisionally applied by Iran since 16 January, 2016.

Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, has described his talks with International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi as "constructive". Grossi is in Tehran today and tomorrow to discuss access for IAEA inspectors to Iran's nuclear sites.

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi will travel to Tehran today, his first trip to Iran since he took office last December. During his discussions there, Grossi will address Iran's cooperation with the Vienna-headquartered agency, and "in particular Iran's provision of access to the Agency's inspectors to requested locations", the IAEA said.

The foreign ministers of the UK, France and Germany - the E3 - have issued a statement in response to the US administration's letter to the UN Security Council yesterday, requesting to initiate the 'snapback' mechanism of the Iran nuclear deal signed five years ago. This mechanism allows a party to the agreement - the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action - to seek the re-imposition against Iran of the multilateral sanctions lifted in 2015 in accordance with resolution 2231, adopted by the UN Security Council.

The International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors today adopted a resolution calling on Iran to fully cooperate with the IAEA in implementing its NPT Safeguards Agreement and Additional Protocol and satisfy the IAEA's requests without further delay. The resolution, submitted by France, Germany and the UK, was adopted by a vote of 25 to 2 with 7 abstentions. The two objections were made by China and Russia.

The European Union plus France, Germany and the UK have said they "deeply regret" the USA's decision to end three sanction waivers covering Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action projects in Iran. Separately, a spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry said the US decision "hampers" international non-proliferation progress.

Iran has tripled its stockpile of enriched uranium to 1,020.9 kg over the past three months and failed to provide International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors access to two undeclared sites, various news agencies reported yesterday.

The foreign ministers of France, Germany and the UK have triggered a dispute resolution mechanism over the nuclear deal with Iran - the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action - following the Middle Eastern country's further step away from its commitments. Josep Borrell, EU foreign affairs chief and coordinator of the JCPOA joint commission, said he had received today a letter from the three ministers for resolution through the mechanism, as set out in paragraph 36 of the agreement.

Iran said yesterday it will ignore the limit on the number of uranium enrichment centrifuges agreed under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), thus withdrawing from the last operational restriction imposed by the 2015 deal. The statement, reported by the Mehr news agency, followed the US assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani last week.

TVEL has announced the suspension of its work to upgrade the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant because Iran fed uranium hexafluoride into two gas centrifuge cascades located in the same room as the cascades meant to be reengineered for stable medical isotope production.

Iran should cooperate fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency to resolve outstanding issues, including the recent detection of natural uranium particles of anthropogenic origin at an undeclared location, Acting Director General Cornel Feruta told the IAEA Board of Governors yesterday. The IAEA and Iran are scheduled to meet next week in Tehran.

Iran has started construction of unit 2 of its nuclear power plant at Bushehr. A ceremony to mark the pouring of first concrete was held yesterday and was attended by the president of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, Ali Akbar Salehi, government officials and executives from Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom.