Tehran, UN watchdog agree on approach to resolve nuclear issues

Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Saturday after talks in Tehran that they agreed on an approach to resolve issues crucial in efforts to revive the country’s 2015 nuclear deal.

Both aimed to resolve a standoff over the origin of uranium particles found at old but undeclared sites by early June, they said in a joint statement.

The announcement came shortly before Russia said it would seek guarantees from the US before it backs the deal, potentially scuppering hopes an agreement could be wrapped up quickly.

IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said the UN agency and Iran “did have a number of important matters that we needed … to resolve,” but that they had now “decided to try a practical, pragmatic approach” to overcome them.

“It would be difficult to believe or to imagine that such an important return to such a comprehensive agreement like the (nuclear deal) would be possible if the agency and Iran would not be seeing eye to eye on how to resolve these important safeguards issues,” Grossi said.

Mohammed Eslami, president of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said the two sides had come to the “conclusion that some documents which need to be ex- changed between the IAEA and the Iranian organization should be exchanged” by May 22.

Russia said that Western sanctions imposed over the conflict in Ukraine had become a stumbling block for the Iran deal, warning the West that Russian national interests would have to be taken into account.

Eslami said the men had reached an “agreement” that would see Iran “presenting documents that would remove the ambiguities about our country.” Eslami said: “God willing, we will do this by Khordad, which is a phase of the agreement in Vienna.” Khordad is a month in the Iranian calendar that starts on May 22 this year.

Eslami did not elaborate on what the documents would discuss. However, Iran has made previous conciliatory gestures before meetings of the IAEA’s membership. Its next board of governors meeting begins on Monday.

Grossi met later with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who according to his ministry’s website expressed hope that “negotiations and understandings” reached between the IAEA and Iran would pave the way for further implementation of the agreements.

Grossi also met Mohammad Mokhber, Iran’s senior vice president. According to state-run IRNA news agency, Mokhber said that “Tehran welcomes the expansion of future cooperation with the IAEA for the peaceful use of nuclear knowledge.”

Meanwhile, on Saturday, Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard unveiled what it described as two new underground missile and drone bases in the country. State TV said the bases contained surface-to-surface missiles and armed drones capable of “hiding themselves from enemy radar.”