Iran Suspends Cooperation With the IAEA
Iran Accuses IAEA Chief of Providing Cover for Israeli-US Attacks on Its Nuclear Sites
The Parliament of Iran voted on Wednesday 25 June, to suspend Iran’s cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) until the safety of the country’s nuclear program is declared by the designated agencies.
Out of 223 members present during the parliamentary vote, 221 voted in favor of the bill and one member abstained. No votes were cast in opposition to the bill.
The overwhelming support for the bill indicates a wider consensus in Iran on the problematic role of the UN nuclear agency during the recent Israeli-US aggression.
The bill was prepared by Iran’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission in response to the insistence of IAEA leadership for immediate access to Iran’s nuclear sites days after they were bombed by Israel and the US in complete violation of international laws.
The adopted bill prevents the IAEA inspectors from visiting the country and its nuclear sites until Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) deems it fit to do so. It also disallows any other form of inspection of the Iranian nuclear sites by the IAEA, Tasnim News Agency reported.
According to the bill, the SNSC will determine if the security of all its nuclear facilities and persons affiliated to the nuclear program are guaranteed before allowing any cooperation with the IAEA in future.
The bill also demands that the IAEA guarantee the implementation of article 4 of the Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which gives all its signatories the rights to have a peaceful nuclear program and nuclear enrichment, before the resumption of cooperation with the agency.
The bill now must be approved by the Guardian Council to become a law.
The security of Iran’s nuclear program was compromised following the repeated Israeli attacks inside Iran since 13 June, targeting civilian infrastructure, nuclear scientists, and nuclear sites. Three Iranian nuclear sites at Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan were also targeted by the US in airstrikes on 22 June.
Israel and the US have claimed that Iranian nuclear sites were completely destroyed in their attacks. Iran, however, has denied the claims and asserts that its nuclear program remains intact despite the illegal attacks and it will continue to pursue its rights under the NPT.
IAEA chief facilitated the Israeli-US attacks
Speaker of the Iranian Parliament Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf had previously said the parliament was considering the move to suspend all cooperation with the IAEA, accusing it of becoming a “political instrument” against the country.
On 20 June, Iran filed a formal complaint against IAEA Chief Rafael Grossi for compromising the impartiality of the agency and acting as accomplice in the Israeli attacks on its nuclear sites.
Iran has objected to Grossi’s failures to condemn Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear facilities, calling it a violation of NPT and other international laws which prohibit any attack on nuclear facilities.
Iran has also claimed that Grossi deliberately presented a biased and “politically motivated” report during the IAEA Board of Governors (BoG) meeting in the second week of June. The report gave the US and its European allies an excuse to present a censor resolution against Iran for its alleged non-cooperation on NPT safeguard agreements.
Israel launched air strikes on various Iranian cities and its nuclear sites on 13 June, hours after the IAEA BoG adopted the censure resolution presented by the Europeans, which accused Iran of non-cooperation for the first time in the last two decades.
Israeli strikes destroyed civilian infrastructure, killed over 600 Iranians, and wounded thousands more. Some prominent Iranian nuclear scientists and top military commanders were among those killed in the Israeli attacks.
Before the attacks began, Iran released a set of documents that they say expose how Grossi shared sensitive information regarding Iran’s nuclear program and its scientists with Israel, accusing him for coordinating with a non-NPT signatory country.
Earlier this week, authors and activists affiliated with the US-based anti-war group CODEPINK verified Iranian claims of active collaboration between the IAEA chief, Israel, and the US, before the Israeli-US air strikes, in an article on Peoples Dispatch.
Press TV also reported that Iran is considering a ban on Rafael Grossi’s entry to the country based on the list of accusations against him.
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