Iran denounces ‘political pressure’ from nuclear watchdog

• Cites restricted access to bombed nuclear sites as key reason for inspection gaps, denies seeking nuclear weapons
• IAEA warns lack of access poses a ‘proliferation concern’, urges immediate resumption of verification activities

TEHRAN: Iran has repudiated an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report as a “tool of political pressure”, following concerns over restricted access to its nuclear site.

Tehran was engaged in discussions with Washington about its nuclear programme when the United States and Israel attacked it on February 28, sparking war in the region.

Israel had previously struck Iran in June 2025, also while Washington and Tehran were engaged in nuclear negotiations, with Washington joining with later strikes before a ceasefire was declared.

During both conflicts, Iranian nuclear sites were bombed repeatedly.

“If the agency wants to be part of a diplomatic solution, it must refrain from turning a technical report into a tool of political pressure,” Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi wrote on X.

In a confidential report seen by AFP on Thursday, the IAEA stated that the lack of access to nuclear sites in Iran constitutes a “proliferation concern”.

“While the agency acknowledged that the military attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities and sites have created an unprecedented situation, it is critical for the agency to conduct verification activities in Iran without delay,” the IAEA said in the report.

The IAEA has never condemned the Israeli-American strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

Gharibabadi on Saturday said the Israeli-American strikes are “not only a violation of Iran’s sovereignty”, but also “a direct blow to nuclear safety”.

“One cannot bomb safeguarded facilities, destroy the access and safety necessary for inspections, and then use the consequences of that very attack as a grievance against Iran,” he argued.

Western countries, led by the US and Israel — Iran’s sworn enemy and considered by experts to be the only nuclear power in the Middle East — accuse Tehran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons.

Iran denies having any such ambitions.

In June 2025, the United States bombed three nuclear sites in Iran, which, according to US President Donald Trump, made it possible to “annihilate” the country’s nuclear programme.

The exact extent of the damage is not known, however, and Iran cites security concerns to justify refusing access to the sites.

Prior to US strikes in June 2025, the IAEA calculated that Iran was in possession of approximately 440 kilogrammes of highly enriched uranium.

Since June 2025, the fate of this stockpile, last seen by IAEA inspectors on June 10, 2025, has remained uncertain.

Published in Dawn, June 7th, 2026