Iran’s parliament has overwhelmingly supported a proposal to suspend cooperation with the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog following US and Israeli military strikes on the country’s atomic facilities during a 12-day conflict.
According to Iranian state television, lawmakers voted 221 in favour, with one abstention and none opposed, to halt engagement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The decision must still be ratified by the Guardian Council, the powerful body responsible for approving legislation.
Parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf condemned the IAEA for not issuing even a “marginal” condemnation of the attacks, accusing the agency of having “put its international credibility up for sale”.
If approved, Ghalibaf said, the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran would halt all cooperation with the IAEA until safeguards for the country’s nuclear sites were guaranteed.
Lawmaker Alireza Salimi said the move would effectively block IAEA inspectors from accessing Iranian nuclear facilities unless cleared by the Supreme National Security Council, Iran’s highest security authority, according to local reports from ISNA.
Later in the day, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told the official IRNA news agency that Tehran’s cooperation with the IAEA would “certainly be affected.” He also blamed the agency for passing a resolution on June 12, accusing Iran of failing to meet its nuclear commitments, calling it a key justification for the subsequent strikes.
On June 13, Israel launched an extensive unprovoked bombing campaign that hit Iranian nuclear sites and killed senior military and scientific figures. The United States followed suit with airstrikes on Sunday, targeting nuclear facilities at Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz. A ceasefire agreement was reached on Tuesday.
Iranian officials have criticised the nuclear watchdog’s silence in the face of the strikes, accusing it of failing to defend international norms regarding the protection of nuclear infrastructure.
