Iran deal without oversight ‘an illusion’, UN nuclear watchdog's chief says
Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), warned that any nuclear agreement between Iran and the United States would be meaningless without UN oversight.
“Without verification, any agreement is no agreement. It’s an illusion of an agreement,” he told The Telegraph, stressing that the IAEA is “the only” body capable of ensuring compliance.
He also warned that the world is at risk of a new nuclear arms race amid rising conflict and instability.
Grossi said global tensions could lead to a “crack in the system” of non-proliferation and trigger a domino effect in which “as many as 20 states” pursue nuclear weapons.
“There is talk about ‘friendly proliferation’... a world with 20 nuclear weapon states or more would be extremely dangerous,” he said, warning the international order is in a “very, very fragile position.”
Grossi said the current “atmosphere of fragmentation, conflict, polarization” could push countries to reconsider nuclear options if they feel insecure.
Bread shortages and steep price hikes are undermining access to a key staple for many in Iran, with citizen accounts received by Iran International describing long lines, flour shortages and prices far exceeding official rates.
“Many bakeries are facing flour shortages and cannot keep up with long lines of customers,” a resident from Malard west of Tehran said.
Another account said: “Right after the war, bread prices doubled. Barbari (a type of Iranian bread) is now 250,000 rials and Sangak is 350,000. Subsidized flour has been removed.”
The reported prices are far above official rates, with the latest approved price for Sangak at about 76,000 rials and Barbari around 55,000.
April 20 marks National Wheat and Bread Day in Iran, meant to highlight the central role of wheat in daily life, but accounts point to worsening conditions for a basic staple.
Conflicting claims on wheat supply
Wheat self-sufficiency has long been a goal promoted by many officials of the Islamic Republic. The first celebration of wheat self-sufficiency was held on November 16, 2004, during the presidency of Mohammad Khatami.
However, this self-sufficiency did not continue in subsequent years for various reasons, including water shortages, and Iran remained reliant on wheat imports. Still, the aspiration for self-sufficiency has continued to be repeated in officials’ statements.
Now, 22 years after the first “self-sufficiency celebration,” as buying bread is becoming an economic challenge for citizens, Ataollah Hashemi, head of the National Wheat Farmers Foundation, has once again reiterated the goal. Speaking on Saturday, April 18, he said: “The country will not need to import wheat this year.”
Yet official customs data shows Iran imported about 2.75 million tons of wheat worth nearly $1 billion in the 10 months to February 2026. The imports were sourced largely from Russia, as well as through intermediaries such as the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.
The reliance on intermediaries, which are not major wheat exporters themselves, points to complications tied to banking restrictions and payment channels, increasing costs through additional transport and fees.
The gap between official statements and import figures raises questions about the sustainability of domestic production and the credibility of self-sufficiency statements.
File photo of a baker handing stacks of Sangak flatbread to customers at a neighborhood bakery.
Rising costs and policy pressures
Bread prices have increased across provinces in the current Iranian year that began on March 21, following subsidy cuts and the move toward a single flour pricing system. Prices now vary depending on flour type and region, with some bakeries selling above official rates.
Despite parliament approving a budget that allocates more than 5,000 trillion rials (over $3 billion) for bread subsidies, no new national price list has been issued for the current year. As a result, last year’s rates remain in effect, while enforcement appears inconsistent.
Inflation and shortages
Before the latest conflict and US-Israeli strikes, annual inflation had already exceeded 70 percent, with food inflation reaching triple digits. Official data shows bread and cereals recorded year-on-year inflation of about 140 percent.
The removal or reduction of subsidized flour in parts of the market has added to the pressure, with more bakeries operating under higher-cost “free flour” systems.
Citizen reports suggest the combined impact of shortages and rising prices is becoming more visible. Long queues at bakeries and inconsistent supply have emerged alongside sharp increases in retail prices.
For many households, bread remains a primary food source, making these changes particularly significant.
The accounts from Tehran and other areas point to a broader strain across the country, where access to basic goods is increasingly shaped by rising costs, uneven supply, and policy shifts that have yet to stabilize the market.
The US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington said on Monday that an Iranian citizen was extradited from Panama to the United States to face a nine-count indictment in Seattle tied to an alleged scheme to violate sanctions against Iran by shipping goods through China.
Reza Dindar, 44, was indicted by a grand jury in August 2014 and arrested in Panama in July 2025 at the request of the United States, the office said in a statement.
Dindar was due to appear in US District Court in Seattle on Monday for an initial hearing, it said.
“The members of this conspiracy thought they could evade export restrictions by shipping goods through a third country – in this case China,” First Assistant US Attorney Charles Neil Floyd said.
According to the indictment, between 2010 and 2014 Dindar managed a business in Xi’an, China, that allegedly concealed the fact it was procuring US goods for companies in Iran.
Prosecutors said Dindar and co-conspirators used deception in 2011 and 2012 to purchase parts for three military sonar systems from a business in Washington state, claiming they were destined for China while intending to ship them onward to Iran.
Dindar is charged with conspiracy, export violations, smuggling, money laundering and filing false export records.
A member of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee said on Monday that Iran's enriched uranium stockpile must not leave the country and that committee members firmly opposed what she called US excessive demands in negotiations.
“We firmly declared our opposition to the excessive demands of the United States in the negotiations,” Sara Fallahi said.
“Based on national interests, enriched uranium must not leave the country,” she added.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Monday that continued US ceasefire violations and actions against Iranian vessels were undermining diplomacy, according to a readout of the call posted on Araghchi’s Telegram channel.
“The unlawful conduct of the United States and the contradictory positions of its leaders are incompatible with claims of diplomacy,” the readout quoted Araghchi as saying.
Araghchi referred to “illegal and provocative US actions against Iranian ports and vessels,” including “the assault on the container ship Touska and the hostage-taking of its crew,” the readout said.
A US official said Washington is uncertain who is in charge in Iran as efforts continue to secure a deal and extend the ceasefire, Axios reported on Monday.
“We aren't sure who's in charge and neither do they. That's going to have work itself out," it quoted the official as saying.
“We thought they were negotiating with the right people, they had reached the cocktail of what they had agreed to, what could be announced. But what happened is the Iranian team went back and the IRGC and those kinds of people said ‘oh, no, no. You don't speak for us,’” a second senior administration official said.
“Now they have a real divide over there between these factions and we're not sure who's going to win it. We hope the team we negotiated with will."
