Iran: "If US Sanctions Are Not Eased Within a Week, Nuclear Inspections Will Be Refused"

"Refusal to Allow IAEA Inspectors Access to Nuclear Facilities"
US-Iran Nuclear Deal at a Stalemate

President Hassan Rouhani of Iran
[Photo by AP]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] Iran has announced a ban on International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors from accessing its nuclear facilities. This is a final ultimatum to the United States, stating that if the U.S. does not ease economic sanctions within a week, Iran will refuse nuclear inspections under the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA - Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action). Analysts say President Joe Biden's diplomacy toward Iran is now being put to the test.

According to major foreign media on the 16th (local time), the IAEA issued a confidential report stating that Iran has notified it of phased measures to refuse nuclear inspections. An IAEA official said, "Iran has informed us that from the 23rd, it will suspend inspections under the nuclear agreement, including the voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)." The Additional Protocol to the NPT requires member states to provide detailed reports on uranium enrichment and nuclear technology research and development.

This announcement came shortly after Iran's Foreign Ministry stated, "If the parties to the nuclear agreement do not fulfill their obligations, such as lifting economic sanctions by the 21st, Iran will not allow IAEA nuclear inspections."

Specifically, Iran declared it would prohibit IAEA inspectors from accessing nuclear facilities within Iran and completely remove various monitoring equipment that measures uranium enrichment in real time. It also included resuming uranium ore mining as a measure to accelerate uranium enrichment for nuclear weapons development.

In response, the IAEA said, "Iran's actions will significantly damage the international organization's mission to monitor Iran's nuclear facilities."

The U.S. government has announced it will respond strongly to Iran's attempt to break the nuclear agreement. The U.S. has set the resumption of Iran's obligations as a condition for returning to the Iran nuclear deal, but Iran insists that the U.S. must first lift economic sanctions, resulting in a deadlock.

Iran's ultimatum is seen as a challenge to the Biden administration's diplomacy toward Iran. Relations between the U.S. and Iran have worsened, especially after suspicions arose that Iran supported the recent rocket attack on a U.S. military base in Iraq, followed by Iran's public refusal of nuclear inspections on this day.

The Guardian stated, "This series of events indicates rising tensions in the Middle East surrounding Iran," and predicted, "The starting point for resolving these issues will come from President Biden's diplomatic skills."

Meanwhile, in July 2015, the U.S., along with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (the U.S., the UK, France, Russia, China) and Germany, signed the Iran nuclear deal, agreeing that Iran would allow IAEA nuclear inspections in exchange for the gradual easing of economic sanctions by Western countries. However, in 2018, the Donald Trump administration unilaterally declared withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and reinstated economic sanctions against Iran.

In response, Iran violated the terms of the nuclear agreement and resumed uranium enrichment and nuclear weapons development programs. Currently, Iran has restarted the Fordow uranium enrichment plant to increase uranium enrichment levels to 20%, the level before the nuclear agreement.

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