UN atomic energy chief rushes to Iran after latest breach of nuke deal

One day after Iran announced it’s continuing to break from the 2015 nuclear deal, the United Nations’ Cornel Feruta arrived in Tehran to meet with officials from the Islamic Republic.

By World Israel News Staff

The United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sent its acting director, Cornel Feruta, to Tehran on Sunday, just one day after Iran announced it is taking further steps to breach the nuclear agreement it signed in 2015 in concert with major Western powers.

According to the semi-official ISNA news agency, Feruta will meet with several of Iran’s highest ranking officials, including Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, National Security Secretary Ali Shamkhani, and Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization chief Ali Akbar Salehi.

Iran’s latest step in breaking the nuclear deal reportedly consists of operating 20 IR-4 and 20 IR-6 advanced centrifuges, in violation of the 2015 agreement, Times of Israel reported.

While Feruta’s presence was characterized as part of its “ongoing interaction” with Tehran to monitor Iran’s compliance with the 2015 nuclear pact, the visit occurs against the backdrop of escalating Iranian aggression in international shipping lanes, Tehran’s open support for terror proxy armies across the region, and Iran’s decision to breach key obligations under the nuclear deal.

Since the United States withdrew from the agreement, Iran has taken a number of steps to breach the deal, including increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium in July beyond the agreement’s 300-kilogram limit and exceeding the agreement’s uranium enrichment limit of 3.67 percent.

On August 30, the IAEA claimed it is continuing to monitor compliance through cameras and on-site inspections. However, Iran regularly declares its ability to break the accord, unless Europe furnishes the economic relief it demands.

Also, The Wall Street Journal reported last week, citing diplomats as its source,  that “Iran is stifling a United Nations probe of its alleged storage of nuclear equipment and radioactive material in Tehran.”

On Monday, the IAEA board of governors is scheduled to convene its quarterly meeting in Vienna, at which the Iranian nuclear program will be a key item on the agenda.

The 2015 agreement left Iran flush with cash and other forms of economic relief, in exchange for its assent to permit international monitors to inspect Iranian nuclear facilities.

In the past, Israel has gathered and presented evidence to the international community demonstrating that Iran seeks nuclear weapons and that its “peaceful” nuclear activities provide cover for its military strategies. Iran routinely calls for Israel’s destruction and arms and funds Palestinian terror groups that pursue this aim.