New York - Vienna: Europe and the Arabs
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said the agency "hopes and expects" greater cooperation from the Iranian government on its nuclear programme. According to what was stated in the daily United Nations news bulletin, a copy of which we received on Tuesday morning

Grossi added in his speech yesterday, Monday, before the IAEA Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, that the verification and monitoring process related to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action carried out by the Agency was seriously affected by Iran’s decision in February 2021 to halt the full implementation of its obligations related to the nuclear program under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

He noted that the situation was "exacerbated" by Iran's subsequent decision to remove all surveillance and monitoring equipment related to the implementation of the Joint Action Plan, which sets the rules for monitoring Iran's nuclear program.

Grossi expressed his regret that no progress had been achieved regarding implementing the procedures stipulated in the joint statement that the agency signed with the Iranian Atomic Energy Authority on March 4, 2023.

Demand explanations
The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency said, "Iran also still needs to provide the Agency with technically reliable explanations regarding the presence of uranium particles resulting from human activity at the Varamin and Torkzabad sites, and to inform the Agency of the current location or locations of relevant nuclear materials and contaminated equipment."

He stressed the need to resolve the outstanding problems regarding providing guarantees stemming from Iran's obligations in agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency, so that the agency is in a position that can "confirm that Iran's nuclear program is exclusively a peaceful program."

The UN official called on Iran to work with the agency seriously and in a sustainable manner in order to fulfill the commitments contained in the joint statement.

Warning about nuclear tests
The Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency spoke about a group of other nuclear files, saying that the continuation of the nuclear program of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) is a clear violation of the relevant Security Council resolutions and "a very unfortunate matter."

He pointed out that the Punggye-ri nuclear testing site is still equipped to conduct nuclear tests, stressing that conducting any nuclear test contradicts Security Council resolutions and would be a "cause for grave concern."

Grossi called on North Korea to fully comply with its obligations under the relevant Security Council resolutions, cooperate immediately with the International Atomic Energy Agency in order to fully and effectively implement the safeguards agreement of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, and resolve all outstanding issues, especially those that arose during the absence of inspectors. Agency for the country.

He stressed that the agency remains ready to play its essential role in verifying North Korea's nuclear program.

catching the Chane
Regarding Syria, Grossi said that no new information had reached the agency “that would affect our assessment of the destroyed building in Deir ez-Zor, consistent with it being a nuclear reactor that should have been reported to the agency by Syria under the safeguards agreement of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.” ".

He reported that he wrote to the Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Faisal Al-Miqdad, last month reiterating his readiness to communicate with Syria with the aim of discussing the unresolved issues.

He expressed his hope that Syria would seize this opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to full and constructive cooperation with the Agency on the implementation of the comprehensive safeguards agreement.