Salehi Praises IAEA Reports on Iran’s Compliance with JCPOA

Salehi told reporters that he had held "good talks” with Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Yukiya Amano during a Sunday meeting in Tehran.

Amano arrived in the Iranian capital on Saturday evening local time to discuss a range of issues, including the implementation of 2015 nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The senior Iranian nuclear energy official expressed satisfaction over the IAEA’s reports on Tehran’s compliance with the deal.

The IAEA has reported eight times from the time that deal was done that Iran has fulfilled all its commitment.

Referring to US President Donald Trump’s decision on October 13 not to certify Iran’s compliance with the JCPOA, Salehi said the IAEA chief has traveled to Iran to play his role and protect the agreement.

He further pointed to a provision of the JCPOA known as Section T, saying, "We also discussed Section T and I clearly expressed (the Islamic Republic’s) stance (on the provision). Section T does not include particular inspections”.

Section T bans "activities which could contribute to the development of a nuclear explosive device”. It lists examples such as using computer models that simulate a nuclear bomb, or designing multi-point, explosive detonation systems.

Unlike many other parts of the deal, the provision makes no mention of the IAEA or specifics of how it will be verified. Russia says that means the IAEA has no authority over it. Western powers and the agency disagree.

Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) reached the 159-page nuclear agreement in July 2015 and implemented it in January 2016.

Since the historic deal was signed in Vienna, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly confirmed the Islamic Republic’s compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA, but some other parties, especially the US, have failed to live up to their undertakings.