Tehran, Dec 13 A senior Iranian diplomat took a swipe at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi for his "political" remarks about the "potential of nuclear proliferation" by Tehran.
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi made the remarks in a post on social media platform X while reacting to part of Grossi's speech at the Nobel Peace Prize Forum in Norway, where he pointed to the risks of the "ignition of smouldering tensions between Israel and Iran" and their exchange of attacks with each other.
He described the IAEA chief's emphasis on Iran's "potential for nuclear proliferation" as entirely "unprofessional and political," stating that Grossi should refrain from making comments based solely on possibilities and speculation, reports Xinhua news agency.
Gharibabadi said Iran was committed to its safeguards obligations, stressing that while the "cruel" sanctions against the country were still in place, Tehran would not accept inspection and monitoring by the IAEA beyond its obligations.
He called on the IAEA's director general to report any "observed deviation" based on evidence instead of uttering "speculations" through media.
This comes days after Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have expressed their determination to continue bilateral interactions and collaborations.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi and IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi exchanged views on the latest state of cooperation between the two sides within the framework of the safeguards agreement in a phone conversation, said the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
During the phone conversation, Araghchi strongly criticised the "unconstructive" actions by some of the members of the IAEA Board of Governors in late November to pass an anti-Tehran resolution, saying it undermined Grossi's efforts to achieve progress towards resolving the safeguards issues between Iran and the agency.
He emphasised that while Iran did not hesitate to respond decisively to such actions, the country was still ready and determined to cooperate constructively with the agency within the defined technical framework.
The IAEA chief, for his part, highlighted the agency's determination to continue "serious" interactions with Iran, stressing that he had held consultations with other sides within the framework of his responsibilities and authority to prepare the ground for the resolution of the existing problems.
The Board of Governors of the IAEA on November 21 passed a resolution that orders Iran to urgently improve cooperation with the agency and requests a "comprehensive" report aimed at pressuring Iran into fresh nuclear talks.
In response to the resolution, Iran announced the following day the activation of a "substantial" number of new "advanced" centrifuges.
Iran signed the nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with several major countries in 2015. The agreement imposed restrictions on Iran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
However, the US government under then President Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement unilaterally in May 2018, reinstating sanctions and prompting Iran to scale back some of its nuclear commitments.
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