IAEA accesses Iranian site

Tuesday, 22 September 2015

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been given access to a location at the Parchin site in Iran for the first time, IAEA director general Yukiya Amano said yesterday.

Yukiya Amano, on the right, and Tero Vajoranta brief the press after their visit to Iran (Image: D Calma/IAEA)

Amano said that he and IAEA deputy director general Tero Varjoranta visited the site on Sunday. The location visited is regarded by the IAEA as essential for the clarification of outstanding issues concerning Iran's nuclear program.

The IAEA had previously only been able to observe using satellite imagery, Amano said in a press briefing. "Inside the building, we saw indications of recent renovation work. There was no equipment in the building. Our experts will now analyse this information and we will have discussion with Iran in the coming weeks," Amano said.

Prior to Amano and Varjoranta's visit, Iran had carried out safeguards activities at the location in question with the permission of the IAEA. These included the collection of environmental samples, which have been authenticated by the IAEA and brought to Vienna for analysis by the agency's staff. "The Agency can confirm the integrity of the sampling process and authenticity of the samples," Amano said.

During his visit to Iran, Amano held talks with the country's president, Hassan Rouhani, vice-president and president of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Ali Akbar Salehi, and Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif. He also met with senior Iranian government officials to discuss issues related to the future implementation of Iran's nuclear commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) agreed on 14 July by Iran and the E3/EU+3 (China, Russia, France, Germany, the UK and the USA).

Road-map progress

Amano said that significant progress had been made in the implication of the 'Road-map' agreed between Iran and the Agency alongside the JCPOA. The Road-map sets out a timeline of activities for the IAEA and Iran to complete in order for the agency to make an assessment of issues relating to possible military dimensions to Iran's nuclear program by the end of 2015.

Amano said that full implementation of the Road-map - in which access to the Parchin site is a key provision - is essential to clarify all outstanding past and present issues regarding Iran's nuclear program. "Much work remains in the weeks ahead," he said.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News