“Iran’s nuclear safety regulations ensure that nuclear facilities are designed in accordance with the latest state-of-the-art technology and without undue risk to the health and safety of their personnel, [the] public, next generations and the environment,” Khazaei wrote in response to an article published by the New York Times.
The article on the aforementioned news outlet on January 2 had made baseless allegations against the safety of Iran’s Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant.
In a letter to the Western outlet’s editor on January 15, Khazaei rejected the claims saying that the application of the highest safety standards “has always been and continues to be the first priority in design, construction and operation” of the 1000-megawatt plant.
The Iranian diplomat also noted that the IAEA has conducted numerous inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities, including the Bushehr plant, to address their safety.
“After extensive investigation, the agency found that Bushehr enjoys the safety standards analogous to other modern and advanced nuclear power plants worldwide,” Khazaei wrote, adding that Iran has already started the internal legal procedure to accede to the Convention on Nuclear Safety.
The initial construction of the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant began in 1975 by German companies, but the work was halted following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
In 1995, Iran and Russia reached an agreement to complete the project, but power generation was delayed several times due to a number of technical and financial problems. Iran officially launched the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant on September 12, 2011.
The 1000-megawatt plant, which is operating under the full supervision of the IAEA, reached its maximum power generation capacity for the first time on August 30, 2012.
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