Iran and IAEA Reach Critical Agreement on Nuclear Inspections

Sat Sep 13 2025 19:23:48 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Tehran agrees to provide the International Atomic Energy Agency with access to all nuclear facilities and to report on the materials present at facilities targeted by Israel.

In a significant development, Iran has entered into an agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that grants the UN agency access to all of its nuclear facilities. Following a recent meeting that included IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, the details of the accord were disclosed. The agreement requires Iran to report on nuclear materials at sites that faced Israeli attacks, marking a step towards resuming cooperation between Iran and the IAEA amidst rising tensions and nuclear concerns.

VIENNA (AP) — An agreement between Tehran and the United Nations’ atomic watchdog will provide the U.N. agency access to all of Iran’s nuclear facilities and require Iran to report on the whereabouts of material that was at sites attacked by Israel earlier this year, the head of the agency said Wednesday.

The accord was announced Tuesday after a meeting between International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.

Details of the agreement were not immediately released. In an address Wednesday to his agency’s board of governors in Vienna, Grossi said the document provides a clear understanding of the procedures for inspection notifications and their implementation.

The agreement “includes all facilities and installations in Iran and it also contemplates the required reporting on all the attacked facilities including the nuclear material present at those,” Grossi added, noting it will “open the way for the respective inspections and access” without specifying when that would happen.

“The technical nature of this document does not diminish its profound significance. Iran and the agency will now resume cooperation in a respective and comprehensive way. These practical steps, allow me to state the obvious, need to be implemented now,” Grossi told the board of governors.

Araghchi said this agreement addresses Iran’s concerns and security challenges while laying out technical requirements for future cooperation. However, he warned that in the event of any hostile act against Iran, the agreement would be regarded as terminated.

The agreement emerges against a backdrop of increasing tensions following Israel's military operations and is likely to have ramifications in ongoing discussions about Iran's nuclear capabilities and compliance with international regulations.