Iran says no new cooperation with UN nuclear watchdog before talks conclude

Iran said Wednesday that it will not provide any new cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) before the conclusion of negotiations.

“In view of these developments, how and under what framework Iran and the IAEA should cooperate is a matter under negotiation, and in fact, the Agency itself has agreed that new developments require a new framework of cooperation,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in statements carried by the state news agency IRNA.

“No new cooperation will be there until the negotiations are concluded,” he stressed.

Araghchi said Iran “will do everything” to prevent the reimposition of UN sanctions under the “snapback” mechanism.

On Wednesday, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi urged Iran to quickly agree to nuclear inspections.

A day earlier, the Iranian Foreign Ministry confirmed that two recent rounds of talks with the IAEA ended any breakthrough.

Iran suspended cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog following US and Israeli attacks on the country, accusing the IAEA of bias against Tehran.

Iran was engaged in Oman-mediated nuclear negotiations with the US when Israel launched a surprise attack on Tehran on June 13, targeting military, nuclear, and civilian sites as well as senior military commanders and nuclear scientists.

Tehran launched retaliatory missile and drone strikes, while the US bombed three Iranian nuclear sites. The 12-day conflict came to a halt under a US-sponsored ceasefire that took effect on June 24.