International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi stated on Wednesday that agency experts have still not been granted permission to access Iran’s main nuclear facilities at Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow, all of which were damaged in US strikes last June.
Speaking to the Austrian newspaper Die Presse and quoted by Middle East Monitor, Grossi explained that although IAEA inspectors remain in Iran, verification activities at the affected sites were suspended after the attacks.
“The main facilities suffered extensive damage, and inspections were impossible for security reasons,” he stated.
Access to the heavily damaged sites at Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow “remains unavailable,” he confirmed.
In mid-June, Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign against Iranian targets, triggering a 12-day war. The United States briefly joined the conflict with strikes on key Iranian nuclear facilities.
Following the strikes, Tehran suspended cooperation with the IAEA and barred inspectors from visiting the damaged sites, accusing the agency of bias and failing to condemn the attacks.
An agreement announced in September between Iran and the IAEA, intended to resume inspections and uranium accounting, has since been declared void by Tehran after Britain, France, and Germany triggered the return of UN sanctions previously lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi recently declared that the Islamic Republic will not allow the IAEA access to nuclear sites targeted during the recent war with Israel unless a specific agreement is reached.
“The facilities that were attacked have their own story, and until a decision is made and a conclusion is reached between us, the IAEA and others, cooperation is not possible,” Araghchi said.
Grossi said last week the UN watchdog seeks to fully re-engage with Iran to restore access to its nuclear sites and verify enrichment activities. He added that the agency’s goal is to “restore continuity of knowledge” and reestablish full verification inside Iran.