ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iran will stop snap inspections from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) if other countries party to the 2015 nuclear deal don’t fulfill their “obligations” by later this month, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday.
“Technical issues should be asked of the Atomic Energy Organization, but if the other party fails to fulfill its obligations on that day [February 25], the government is obliged to suspend the voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol,” Saeed Khatibzadeh said in a press conference.
The Additional Protocol allows intrusive IAEA inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities under the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), signed by Iran and six other world powers.
The agreement is designed to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions in return for sanction relief. The US withdrew from the agreement in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on Tehran, prompting the Islamic Republic to take several steps back from its obligations under the agreement.
The decision does not mean the “end of all supervision,” Khatibzadeh said, but ceasing supervision beyond the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) safeguards.
“All these measures will be reversible provided the other parties adhere to their obligations,” the spokesman added.
US President Joe Biden’s administration has repeatedly said it is willing to return to the deal if Iran reverses its violations of the agreement
The IAEA confirmed last week that Iran has begun producing uranium metal, another step away from its deal.
