Iran says ‘no deviation’ after talks with IAEA

In this May 24, 2021 file photo, the flag of Iran waves in front of the International Center building with the headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, Austria. (PHOTO / AP)

TEHRAN – Iran's nuclear chief said Wednesday that Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency have discussed and finalized a number of issues at the level of experts and claimed that there had been no "deviation" from the country's peaceful nuclear activities.

There was no discrepancy between the design information questionnaire submitted by Iran to the international nuclear watchdog and the layout of centrifuges at Iran's nuclear facilities, Iranian Students' News Agency quoted President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Mohammad Eslami as saying on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting.

Turning to the safeguards issues, President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Mohammad Eslami noted that Iran had held talks with the IAEA and provided clarifications, as some people were attempting to claim Tehran had not responded to the IAEA

Turning to the safeguards issues, Eslami noted that Iran had held talks with the IAEA and provided clarifications, as some people were attempting to claim Tehran had not responded to the IAEA.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi will travel to Iran within the next few days for discussions on certain topics, including the safeguards issues and the closure of the case, he said.

Eslami also rejected the claim that Iran has enriched uranium to a level of about 84 percent.

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Over the past months, the IAEA has criticized Iran for its lack of cooperation with the agency. On Nov 17, 2022, the IAEA's Board of Governors passed a resolution proposed by the United States, Britain, France, and Germany that called on Iran to collaborate with the agency's investigators regarding the alleged "traces of uranium" at a number of its "undeclared" sites. Iran has repeatedly rejected such allegations.

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On Feb 19, Bloomberg cited two senior diplomats as claiming that IAEA inspectors in Iran had detected uranium enriched to levels "just below that needed for a nuclear weapon." On the same day, AEOI spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi was quoted by IRNA as saying that the Bloomberg report was a "distortion of the facts" and part of a smear campaign.