The meeting on Iran's nuclear energy program ended on Wednesday with the agency failing to provide any evidence on a potential diversion in the Islamic Republic’s nuclear activities.
During the meeting, the IAEA accused Tehran of building a reactor in the central city of Arak with a design not previously approved by the Agency.
Iran’s IAEA Ambassador Ali Asghar Soltanieh, however, rejected the accusation, arguing that the IR-40 reactor is visited by international inspectors every three months and that the Arak site produces radioactive isotopes for medical purposes.
The Board expressed dissatisfaction with the negotiations that have been going on for over a year to find a solution to the outstanding issues, saying that that talks “are going around in circles.”
However, the Iranian ambassador said Tehran is very clear in its nuclear policy and calls for a depoliticized approach to its nuclear energy program. He also called for absolute confidentiality of the information given by Iran to the IAEA, as recent information leaks have raised concerns on the Iranian side.
Soltanieh also criticized the world powers for creating "destructive" political tensions among member states.
"They have to stop this trend, and let us do our work. Then the agency could report whether they have found a nuclear weapon or not,” he said, recalling how over the past 10 years, IAEA inspectors have failed to find "even one gram of uranium to be diverted toward military purposes.”
Iran has repeatedly voiced its willingness to cooperate with the IAEA under a clear framework.
The United States, Israel, and their allies have repeatedly accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program. Washington and the EU have used the unfounded accusation as a pretext to impose illegal sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Iran rejects the allegations, arguing that as a committed signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a member of the IAEA, it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
