Iran Parliament Speaker: "If Europe Does Not Comply with Nuclear Agreement, IAEA Cooperation Will Be Reconsidered"

Ali Larijani, Speaker of the Parliament, Criticizes: "The Problem Is Not Iran but the Threat from the United States"

Interpreted as a De Facto Refusal of Inspections on Nuclear Facilities and Activities

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] On the 19th (local time), Ali Larijani, Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, warned that if the European side does not comply with the nuclear agreement (JCPOA - Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) and initiates dispute resolution procedures, Iran will reconsider its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Larijani attended the plenary session that day and said, "I deeply regret that European foreign ministers, succumbing to the United States' tariff threats, have declared their intention to formally begin dispute resolution procedures," adding, "In response to such unfair measures, the Iranian Parliament will reconsider its cooperation with the IAEA."

Cooperation with the IAEA means allowing inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities and nuclear activities.

Under the nuclear agreement, Iran has regularly undergone detailed nuclear inspections at the level of the Additional Protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Currently, Iran discloses all nuclear programs and related facilities to the IAEA inspection team, which issues quarterly reports.

In response to the United States' unilateral withdrawal from the nuclear agreement in May 2018, Iran has gradually reduced the scope of its compliance with the JCPOA in five stages since May last year, but has continued to fulfill its inspection-related obligations to the IAEA.

This time, Iran's statement about reconsidering its obligations to the IAEA is interpreted as a de facto refusal of nuclear inspections and a full-scale resumption of its nuclear program.

The foreign ministers of the three European countries that signed the nuclear agreement? the United Kingdom, France, and Germany?issued a joint statement on the 14th, announcing that Iran violated the nuclear agreement by reducing its scope and that they would initiate dispute resolution procedures and convene a joint commission to address the issue.

Larijani said, "Just as Europe has repeatedly criticized the United States' withdrawal from the nuclear agreement, the current problem is not Iran's fault," adding, "The root cause is the threat from the United States, and because of their economic power, Europe is acting unfairly and insultingly."

He continued, "If we reconsider our cooperation with the IAEA, it will not be something we initiated but a response to Europe's measures," emphasizing, "It would be better for Europe to handle this issue fairly and reasonably."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.