Iran Warns Of ’Destructive’ Impact as IAEA Board Passes West’s Resolution

By Staff, Agencies

Iran has repudiated a resolution submitted by the US and its allies to the UN nuclear agency’s Board of Governors, saying that its architects have drawn on recent riots in the country to pile up their political pressure on the Islamic Republic.

The International Atomic Energy Agency's board passed the resolution on Thursday, criticizing Iran for what it claimed as lack of cooperation with the UN nuclear agency.

The motion brought by the United States, Britain, France and Germany -- but voted against by China and Russia -- is the second of its kind within six months.

Iran's envoy to the IAEA Mohsen Naziri-Asl warned that the measure may "affect the process of our country's cooperation" with the UN nuclear agency.

"We firmly believe that this resolution will have no result... it is intended to justify more unilateral sanctions against the Iranian nation," he said, according to the IRNA news agency.

Relatively, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani earlier warned of the motion's "adverse effects" on the resolution of remaining technical issues with the agency.

“As a delegate from the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran has been progressively negotiating and interacting with the IAEA director general [Rafael Grossi] in recent weeks to find a practical solution to the complex and technical issues pertaining to the Safeguards Agreement, there is neither a technical reason whatsoever nor a safeguards urgency to submit such a resolution against Iran,” Kanaani noted.

“The submission of this unnecessary and destructive resolution, and the political abuse of the IAEA’s position and capacity by the US and the E3 countries have once again exposed the real intention of these countries to advance their political conspiracies and objectives,” Kanaani said.

“We expect the independent and sovereign member statues of the IAEA Board of Governors, which attach paramount significance to the neutrality, independence and credibility of the agency as a technical institution, not to back the resolution and to declare their positions clearly,” he added.

Nevertheless, Kanaani stressed that Iran is committed to the implementation of the Comprehensive Safeguard Agreement, and will continue to cooperate with the IAEA on the basis of the accord.

"One should not forget the fact that the uninterrupted implementation of the Safeguards and extensive verification activities of the IAEA in Iran have been possible over the past two decades only in light of Iran's cooperation and goodwill," he noted.

“While the Islamic Republic of Iran stands committed to its international obligations, it remains strong-minded and resilient to defend its national interests and rights, and confront the pressure and excessive demands of the United States and Western countries," the official said, pledging Tehran's decisive response to the resolution.

Iran has already voiced readiness to hold technical talks with IAEA experts to discuss the accusations related to so-called "undeclared" nuclear sites, which were made based on false reports provided by the ‘Israeli’ regime.

Tehran has asked the IAEA to avoid politicizing the issue and focus on technical aspects in line with the organization's mandate.

Iran has turned off a number of IAEA’s cameras which were functioning outside the Safeguards Agreement since early June after the IAEA Board of Governors passed a resolution that accused the country of not cooperating with the UN body.

The accusations leveled by the agency against Iran are primarily based on documents supplied by the Zionist entity, which Tehran has rejected as fake and fabricated and provided by members of the anti-Iran terrorist Mujahedin Khalq Organization [MKO].