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The US state department on Monday announced it would limit the movement of Iran's delegation to the UN General Assembly annual meeting this week to prevent lavish shopping and the promotion of Tehran's "terrorist agenda."
"The United States took action this week to impose maximum pressure on the Iranian regime by restricting their UNGA delegation’s movement and access to wholesale club stores and luxury goods," the state department said in a statement.
"We will not allow the Iranian regime to allow its clerical elites to have a shopping spree in New York while the Iranian people endure poverty, crumbling infrastructure, and dire shortages of water and electricity."
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are set to attend high-level meetings at the UN starting September 22 in New York.
The 80th session of the UN General Assembly opened on September 9, with world leaders due to arrive in New York this week.
"Secretary Rubio is also restricting the Iranian delegation to the areas strictly necessary to transit to and from the UN headquarters district to conduct their official UN business," the state department added. "The security of Americans is always our priority," it said, vowing to bar Iran the ability "to promote its terrorist agenda".
The 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement requires the United States to grant visas to UN representatives, including world leaders, for UN-related activities in New York, with exceptions only for proven security threats.
Washington earlier this month revoked or denied visas for most Palestinian officials to attend the UNGA, in a move seen as a protest about Western allies' looming move to recognize a Palestinian state.
The state department said its move was made in solidarity with the Iranian people.
"When the United States says it stands with the people of Iran, we mean it. Today’s actions affirm the United States’ unwavering commitment to supporting the Iranian people in their pursuit of accountability for the regime and for a better life."
Cooperation between Iran and International Atomic Energy Agency cannot be severed if UN sanctions resume as expected in less than a week, the UN nuclear watchdog's chief said on Monday, after Tehran threatened to cut its ties with the IAEA.
“Snapback, which is going to have – if it happens – a huge impact in terms of economic sanctions and other things, it’s one process," Grossi said, referring to UN sanctions on Iran invoked by European states which are due to resume on Sept. 28.
"Then we have something which is the relationship between the IAEA and Iran, which, in principle, must be permanent and not be contingent on the snap back being activated,” he said in an interview with Al Jazeera English.
"There is an ongoing cooperation. Is it all that we would aspire to get? Not now, but we are, I hope, on a way to get more of that cooperation. And so time for diplomacy is needed, yes,” Grossi added.
Robust diplomatic efforts which involve the United States are afoot to resolve the impasse, the IAEA chief said.
“Iran, for one, has said that this might affect the relationship and the cooperation with us,” he said, adding that “there is so much diplomatic activity… between those countries, ourselves, the United States as well, to try to find a way forward.”
"We have to remind them that they have obligations if they want to continue to be a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)," Grossi said.
Israel and the United States attacked Iranian nuclear sites in a brief June war, setting back the nuclear program but leaving its fate unresolved. Tehran declined to allow IAEA inspectors to resume their work.
Iran's Supreme National Security Council warned on Saturday that the so-called snapback of UN sanctions could cause Tehran to end cooperation with the IAEA, amid calls by hardliners in Tehran for withdrawal from the NPT.
Dozens of Iranian lawmakers on Monday called for a fundamental shift in the country’s defense policy, urging authorities to consider building a nuclear weapon as a deterrent.
The United States and its European allies accuse Tehran of seeking the capability to produce nuclear arms, a charge Iran denies.
Iran has long insisted that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only and cites a religious injunction or fatwa from its Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei against nuclear weapons as proof of its intentions.
International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said on Monday he hoped cooperation with Iran would not suffer if UN sanctions were reinstated under the snapback mechanism triggered by European powers.
“We certainly hope that the work between the agency and Iran is not going to suffer from other situations, namely the activation of the snapback mechanism, which, as you know, means that sanctions will be reinstated,” Grossi told AFP.
"I am relatively optimistic that we can keep this framework of cooperation. This mutual understanding, in spite of, you know, external factors, like if this happens, the reactivation of sanctions, but it's obviously quite a difficult juncture. It's a very difficult situation we are facing, right now."
Grossi said that he had been in contact with European leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron on the issue.
“Of course, talking to the E3 [France, Germany and the United Kingdom] – and I was in contact with Emmanuel Macron over the past few hours. So there is a lot of conversation still ongoing. And this is why I hope that we will have some reasonable way forward,” he said.
Iran and Russia will sign an agreement this week for the construction of eight nuclear power plants, Iranian atomic energy chief Mohammad Eslami said on Monday during a visit to Moscow.
If finalized, the move would represent a strong signal of Russian support for the Islamic Republic's nuclear program amid growing military and diplomatic pressure.
Eslami, who is also a vice president in Iran, told state media that four of the reactors would be located at the Bushehr site in southern Iran, where the country’s only operating nuclear power plant is situated.
“The necessary negotiations and studies for the implementation of the second phase of this agreement have been completed, the land for the plants has been selected, prepared and equipped, and with the agreement that will be signed this week we will enter the operational stage,” Eslami said.
He added that site visits had already taken place and contractual talks concluded.
Eslami, who traveled to Moscow to meet officials and speak at Russia’s Nuclear Energy Week, said the project is part of Tehran’s long-term plan to expand nuclear capacity to 20 gigawatts by 2040.
Iran currently generates about 1 GW from its single Bushehr reactor, which was also built by Russia, and has faced recurring electricity shortages during peak demand.
Eslami's remarks comes as Britain, France and Germany (E3) push to reinstate UN sanctions, accusing Iran of violating a 2015 nuclear deal.
The 15-member UN Security Council on Friday rejected a draft resolution to permanently lift sanctions on Tehran. Russia, China and two others voted to do so.
Asked about the outlook for cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Eslami said: “We have always emphasized that these three European countries and the Zionist influence network should no longer damage the credibility of the United Nations and international organizations, and should allow these organizations to perform their duties fairly and professionally within the framework of regulations.”
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon said on Monday the imminent snapback of UN sanctions increased pressure on Tehran, and that Iran must decide its path as the rest of the world would support the Jewish state if it did not change course.
“I hope the Iranians would understand now it is up to them to decide where they want to go,” he said.
“If they go back, they were there, then the rest of the world will stay next to Israel against them. I hope that they would change course and would understand they have to invest on the people of Iran and not building a nuclear threat."
