IAEA Can Close ‘Past, Present Issues’ over Iran’s Nuclear Case Forever: Envoy
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Reza Najafi said the UN’s nuclear watchdog can now close the case of the Islamic Republic’s past and present nuclear activities.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Najafi said the Islamic Republic has met its commitments “with good will,” adding, “The agency is now in a position where it can close the dossier (on Iran’s nuclear program) once and for all through providing its final assessment.”
The Iranian envoy pointed to an earlier statement released by the IAEA on Thursday, saying that as the agency has announced, all activities set out in “the Road-map for the clarification of past and present outstanding issues regarding Iran’s nuclear program" were completed.
Najafi said according to the recent nuclear agreement between Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany), the members of the group should introduce a resolution to an extraordinary session of the IAEA Board of Governors in December aimed at closing past issues of Iran’s nuclear case.
The Iranian envoy further emphasized that closing the case would further pave the way for the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) agreed between Iran and the Group 5+1.
In its statement, the IAEA also said that Director General Yukiya Amano will provide “the final assessment on the resolution of all past and present outstanding issues” to the watchdog’s Board of Governors by December 15.
On July 14, Iran and the IAEA signed the Road-map regarding the Islamic Republic’s nuclear work in the Austrian capital city of Vienna.
The agreement was reached on the same day Iran and the Group 5+1 (also known as P5+1 or E3+3) finalized the text of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in Vienna.
As part of the Road-map, the IAEA is required to finish its investigations on Iran’s nuclear activities and submit a report to the agency’s Board of Governors by December 15.
The UN nuclear monitoring agency has confirmed in its regular reports that Tehran has been complying with the terms of its agreement with the IAEA, required for the implementation of JCPOA.
Under the JCPOA, limits will be put on Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for, among other things, the removal of all economic and financial bans against the Islamic Republic.