Tehran will limit its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over what it has called the organization’s “silence” regarding Israeli strikes, according to Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi.
Israeli jets bombed nuclear and military facilities in Iran on Friday morning in what West Jerusalem described as an operation to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Iran, which denies having a military nuclear program, responded by saying the bombing was tantamount to a declaration of war and launched its own strikes against Israel. Tehran also suspended nuclear negotiations with the US; the next round had originally been scheduled for Sunday.
“We have decided that, from now on, we will no longer announce the details of our nuclear activities to the Agency in advance. This is part of a review of the level of our cooperation, which will no longer be the same as before,” Gharibabadi told SNN on Saturday.
“We have always maintained the most transparent peaceful nuclear program, but when the Agency and its Board of Governors remain silent in the face of Israeli aggression or issue resolutions influenced by political pressure, we can no longer maintain the same level of cooperation,” he added.
Without directly blaming Israel, the IAEA released a statement on Friday stressing that attacks on civilian nuclear sites are illegal under international law and called for dialogue.
The international watchdog had previously reported finding uranium traces at locations Iran had not declared as nuclear sites and, on Thursday, formally accused the Islamic Republic of breaching its non-proliferation obligations. Tehran has rejected the allegations as politically motivated.
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