Rafael Grossi, the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, criticized the cancellation of the entry permits for several inspectors of the organization in his press conference on November 22, stating that it is a serious blow to the agency’s work.
During the press conference, which took place after the start of the agency’s Board of Governors’ annual session, Mr. Grossi described Iran’s action of revoking the inspectors’ licenses as a serious blow to the agency’s ability to verify Iran’s nuclear activities. He emphasized that the regime’s authorities have revoked the licenses of one-third of the main group of inspectors.
Mohammad Eslami, the head of the regime’s Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI), stated on October 4 that while the Iranian regime has confirmed the activities of 127 inspectors from the IAEA, it has banned “three or four malicious European inspectors” from continuing their activities at Iranian sites.
He described the banned inspectors, who have been prevented from monitoring Iran’s nuclear activities and entering Iran, as having a history of “aggressive political behaviors.”
On November 22, Rafael Grossi emphasized that these inspectors are among the “most experienced” inspectors of the agency. He expressed hope that Iran’s decision would change.
Earlier, in a joint statement in mid-September, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the United States demanded that the Iranian regime “immediately” reconsider its recent decision to cancel the licenses of “some” IAEA inspectors.
However, Mohammad Eslami stated on November 22 that 120 inspectors from the agency have been granted permission to enter Iran.
This is the second time that the Director-General of the agency has strongly emphasized the need to grant licenses to all inspectors to verify Iran’s actions. He previously warned, citing North Korea’s expulsion of UN inspectors before conducting a “nuclear weapon test,” that the international community should be cautious about not repeating the failure experienced with North Korea in the case of Iran.
In the preliminary statement issued by the Director-General of the agency for the Board of Governors’ annual session, which was published on the morning of November 22, it was stated that Iran now possesses enough uranium with a 60% enrichment level to produce three atomic bombs, based on the standards of the IAEA. It also mentioned that Iran has not yet provided answers to the agency’s key questions and concerns regarding its nuclear program.
According to the statement, which Reuters news agency released last week, since the preparation of the agency’s previous report on September 4, the volume of uranium with a 60% enrichment level in Iran has increased by 6.7 kilograms and reached approximately 128 kilograms.
