IAEA head hopes to hold talks with Iranian president by November

“After the election in Iran (in July), I corresponded with President Pezeshkian, indicating my disposition to meet him in Tehran to re-launch the dialogue and cooperation between the Agency and Iran,” Grossi said in his introductory statement to a quarterly meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna on Monday.

He added that the new Iranian president agreed to meet him “at an appropriate juncture”.

“I encourage Iran to facilitate such a meeting in the not-too-distant future so that we can establish a constructive dialogue that leads swiftly to real results,” stated the UN nuclear agency chief.

Asked at a news conference if his reference to the “not-too-distant future” meant before or after the presidential election in the United States, scheduled on November 5, Grossi said, “No, hopefully before that”.

The IAEA Board of Governors in June passed a resolution against Iran despite warnings from Tehran that it would react decisively to such a measure.

In November, Iran started enriching uranium to the purity level of 60% at its Fordow nuclear facility, after informing the IAEA of its decision via a letter.

Iran also installed two new IR2M and IR4 cascades at Natanz facility, which have now reached the stage prior to the injection of uranium gas into centrifuges.

“What we see is that there is some work, but nothing that indicates a rush to a fast implementation of a big increase in terms of enrichment production,” Grossi added.

Iran has stepped up nuclear work since 2019, after former US President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the 2015 nuclear agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), reached under his predecessor Barack Obama.

Tehran started to reduce its commitments under the JCPOA in a series of pre-announced and clear steps after witnessing the other parties’ failure to secure its interests under the agreement.