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Iran relents on IAEA inspections at two sites, ending standoff
Source: Reuters
WORLD NEWS AUGUST 26, 2020 / 8:10 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO
Iran relents on IAEA inspections at two sites, ending standoff
Parisa Hafezi, Francois Murphy
4 MIN READ
DUBAI/VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran said on Wednesday it was ending a months-long standoff with the U.N. nuclear watchdog by granting it access to two sites suspected of once hosting secret activities, easing diplomatic pressure on Tehran as Washington seeks to reimpose sanctions.
Wednesday’s breakthrough in the dispute over the sites was announced in a joint statement by Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency during IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi’s first visit to the Islamic Republic since he took over the role in December.
“Iran is voluntarily providing the IAEA with access to the two locations specified by the IAEA,” Grossi and Iran’s nuclear agency chief, Ali Akbar Salehi, said in the joint statement, confirming an earlier report by Reuters.
It said dates for IAEA inspectors to visit the sites - one near Karaj west of Tehran, the other near Isfahan in central Iran - had been agreed, without naming them, as well as the parameters of “verification activities” there.
Asked upon his return to Vienna when those dates were, Grossi declined to say exactly because such details are confidential. But he told reporters, “It is very, very soon.”
-snip-
Iran relents on IAEA inspections at two sites, ending standoff
Parisa Hafezi, Francois Murphy
4 MIN READ
DUBAI/VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran said on Wednesday it was ending a months-long standoff with the U.N. nuclear watchdog by granting it access to two sites suspected of once hosting secret activities, easing diplomatic pressure on Tehran as Washington seeks to reimpose sanctions.
Wednesday’s breakthrough in the dispute over the sites was announced in a joint statement by Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency during IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi’s first visit to the Islamic Republic since he took over the role in December.
“Iran is voluntarily providing the IAEA with access to the two locations specified by the IAEA,” Grossi and Iran’s nuclear agency chief, Ali Akbar Salehi, said in the joint statement, confirming an earlier report by Reuters.
It said dates for IAEA inspectors to visit the sites - one near Karaj west of Tehran, the other near Isfahan in central Iran - had been agreed, without naming them, as well as the parameters of “verification activities” there.
Asked upon his return to Vienna when those dates were, Grossi declined to say exactly because such details are confidential. But he told reporters, “It is very, very soon.”
-snip-
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-nuclear-iaea/iran-relents-on-iaea-inspections-at-two-sites-ending-standoff-idUSKBN25M1J7