IAEA pressures Iran as fate of talks on JCPOA hangs in balance

The UN atomic watchdog chided Iran on Tuesday for its continued failure to answer questions including on uranium traces found at three undeclared sites, which could complicate the resumption of talks to revive Iran’s nuclear deal.

“The Director General is increasingly concerned that even after some two years the safeguards issues outlined above in relation to the four locations in Iran not declared to the Agency remain unresolved,” the International Atomic Energy Agency said in one of two quarterly reports on Iran.

The confidential reports by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi to IAEA member states, issued ahead of next week’s meeting of its 35-nation Board of Governors, were reviewed by Reuters. The second report said Iran must resolve outstanding issues relating to the sites, which include questions about a fourth location the IAEA has not inspected, “without further delay”.