US, E3 Use Incorrect IAEA Report to Fault Iran Nuclear Work

By Staff, Agencies

The US and E3 accuse Iran of engaging in nuclear activity that is inconsistent with its obligations under the NPT, using an incorrect International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] report as the basis of their claim.

Through the report, the IAEA, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, on Wednesday accused Iran of making an undeclared change to the interconnection between the two clusters of advanced machines enriching uranium at the country's Fordow nuclear facility.

In a joint statement on Friday, the US, Britain, France, and Germany accused Iran of effecting an "unnotified change" to the devices installed at the facility. "As stated by the Agency, this unnotified change is inconsistent with Iran's obligations under its NPT-required Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement."

A UN watchdog report shows Iran is being inconsistent in meeting its nuclear obligations, they claimed in the statement.

This is while, soon after the report issuance, Iran notified the IAEA of its mistaken nature to resolve the matter.

Contacting the agency on Thursday, Iran’s nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami lamented that the report had been produced based on a mistake made by an IAEA inspector during an unannounced visit to the site. "The agency’s position is regrettable," said Eslami, who heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran [AEOI], noting, "We immediately provided the [due] explanation [to the IAEA]… the agency’s inspector found out that they had made a mistake."

The Islamic Republic started enriching uranium to the purity level of 60% at Fordow in November, describing the move as a strong message to an earlier anti-Iran resolution, which had been initiated by Washington and the European troika and passed by the IAEA’s Board of Governors.

The resolution had criticized Iran for, what it called, a lack of cooperation with the agency, something that Tehran has invariably rejected as untrue.