TEHRAN — Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has confirmed that the country’s cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has not ended, but has instead entered a new phase. Under this restructured framework, all inspection requests by the UN watchdog will now be reviewed by the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), following a wave of the Israeli attacks and US-led airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
“Cooperation with the IAEA has not ceased,” Araqchi said during a press briefing in Tehran. “It has just taken a new form. From now on, all inspections will be coordinated through the Supreme National Security Council for reasons related to national safety and sovereignty.”
The change comes amid heightened tensions following the June 13 attacks on Iranian nuclear power plant.
, including the Fordow and Natanz facilities, which Tehran has described as illegal acts of war. Iran’s Parliament responded by passing legislation on July 2 requiring that all IAEA inspections be cleared at the national security level.
According to Mehr News, Araghchi said elsewhere that the cooperation with the IAEA has not stopped,” adding that “Iran has been a compliant member of the NPT and has cooperated with the Agency.”
“Our cooperation with the Agency has not stopped, it has just got a new form. From now on, relations with the Agency will be managed by the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC).”
“The Agency’s request to continue cooperation with Iran will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by the SNSC, and decisions will be made with taking into account safety and security,” the minister explained.
“Security and safety are a matter of concern for inspectors approaching attacked nuclear facilities,” he elaborated.
“The fact of the matter is that our nuclear facilities were attacked and that proximity to these facilities currently poses risks, including the spread of radioactive materials or explosions, and we think, the issue of security and safety is a matter of concern for inspectors when they approach these facilities.”
Meanwhile, he stressed that “There is no other way ahead but returning to diplomacy.”
According to Reuters, the new law effectively suspends automatic compliance with IAEA inspections and allows Tehran to approve or reject verification visits on a case-by-case basis. As noted by the same report, this legislation was presented as a direct response to what Iran described as acts of aerial aggression supported by Western powers. “We are aware of these reports. The IAEA is awaiting further official information from Iran,” the IAEA said in a statement.
The IAEA, citing safety concerns, has withdrawn its remaining inspectors from Iranian territory. As reported by Reuters, the agency described the move as temporary but deeply disruptive. IAEA Director Rafael Grossi warned that “We cannot afford that the inspection regime is interrupted,” Grossi told a press conference in Vienna last week, and called the development “deeply concerning” in the context of nuclear transparency. “Grossi reiterated the crucial importance of the IAEA discussing with Iran modalities for resuming its indispensable monitoring and verification activities in Iran as soon as possible,” the IAEA said.
In a statement issued on July 10, President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the IAEA of applying “double standards” and stressed that future cooperation hinges on the agency abandoning what he termed a biased approach. “The continuation of Iran’s cooperation depends on the IAEA abandoning its double standards regarding the nuclear file,” Pezeshkian was quoted as saying in a Reuters.
Araqchi, speaking separately, criticized Germany’s condemnation of Iran’s legislative changes. “What truly sends a devastating message,” he wrote on X, “is Germany’s support for unlawful attacks on safeguarded nuclear sites.” This was in response to Berlin’s statement that Iran’s decision undermines global non-proliferation efforts.
“We are committed to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty reports of a full suspension are fake news,” As reported by Iran International.
According to Reuters, the foreign minister emphasized that safety concerns—including potential exposure to radioactive materials and unexploded munitions—necessitated Iran’s decision to rechannel all cooperation through its SNSC.
IAEA inspectors have not conducted site visits since early July, and remote monitoring infrastructure has been reportedly deactivated at several key facilities. This blackout leaves the IAEA unable to verify uranium enrichment levels or centrifuge activity.
While Iran denies it is pursuing nuclear weapons, its enriched uranium stockpile, estimated to be more than 30 times the JCPOA limit, remains opaque due to lack of access. Nevertheless, Tehran insists its activities are strictly peaceful and governed under its NPT obligations. “We are a nuclear-threshold state, not a nuclear-armed state,” Araqchi reiterated, adding that Iran has no intention of crossing the line unless its sovereignty continues to be violated.
As diplomatic fallout spreads, the European Union and the Biden administration have issued sharp warnings. Germany’s Foreign Ministry labeled Iran’s move a “devastating message,” while US officials hinted at the potential reactivation of snapback sanctions. Yet Tehran has dismissed JCPOA mechanisms as obsolete. “The JCPOA died the moment the United States unilaterally violated it,” Araqchi said, calling European diplomacy “toothless and complicit.”
Nuclear policy analysts say Iran’s recalibration mirrors strategies used by other nuclear-capable states outside the NPT framework. “This is not a cessation but a strategic restructuring of oversight,” said Dr. William Alberque, Director at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. “It gives Tehran legal cover while denying immediate transparency.”
Inside Iran, public messaging has framed the overhaul as a reclaiming of national dignity. State-run media hailed the decision as “a sovereign response to foreign coercion,” and conservative lawmakers are now pushing for further restrictions on cooperation with Western scientific agencies.
As reported by Reuters, Iran maintains that its cooperation with the IAEA is intact in principle but conditional in practice. Future access will depend on international behavior, safety guarantees, and recognition of Iranian sovereignty.
With inspectors out and diplomatic channels narrowing, the future of Iran’s nuclear engagement with the global community now rests on whether the West chooses confrontation or mutual respect.
