IAEA chief says Iran nuclear report ‘not new’ and no basis for military action
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said the agency’s recent report on Iran’s nuclear program contained no new findings and should not be used to justify military action.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said the agency had long noted Iran’s lack of cooperation on clarifying aspects of its nuclear activity, but stressed the report “could hardly be a basis for any military action,” in an interview with CNN.
“Military action, from whomever it comes, is a political decision that has nothing to do with what we are saying,” Grossi said. He added that the IAEA currently has no indication Iran is operating a systematic program to produce a nuclear weapon.
CNN, which aired the interview, said the IAEA’s report had been cited in part by Israeli officials for their military strikes on Iran.
Earlier this month, the IAEA Board of Governors passed a resolution declaring Iran in non-compliance with its safeguards obligations for the first time in nearly two decades.
In its board-mandated report published in May, the agency concluded that three of four sites under investigation had been part of a previously undeclared, structured nuclear program Iran conducted until the early 2000s, and that some of the work involved undeclared nuclear material.
