Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), warned that time is exhausted for Iran and the United States to reach a nuclear agreement.
These comments become before a second round of talks scheduled for Saturday between Tehran and Washington in Rome, Oman acting as a mediator.
Grosi, who directs the IAEA – Responsible for monitoring the nature of the Iranian nuclear program – said during a visit to Tehran on Thursday: “We are at a critical stage in these important negotiations”.
Addressing several Iranian state media, he added: “We know that time is short, that's why I'm here … to help facilitate the process.”
His remarks were then confirmed by the headquarters of the IAEA in Vienna.
He also pointed out that the United Nations agency must play an active role in negotiations.
Grossi said: “I am also in contact with the American negotiator to explore how the agency can act as a bridge between Iran and the United States and help achieve a positive result.”
Thursday morning, Grosi met Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Iranian atomic energy organization, although no detail of this meeting was published.
The daily newspaper Shargh reported: “This visit marks the start of a chapter sensitive to Iranian diplomacy.”
In an interview with the world published on Wednesday, Grosi said that Iran was “not far” to be able to produce a nuclear bomb. He said: “There is still a certain distance to travel, but it must be recognized that it is not far away.”
Grosi had also declared the day before concerning the role of the agency in negotiations according to which “everyone agrees that the participation of the agency is essential, whatever the nature of the discussions. Without our presence, any agreement is only a piece of paper ”.
Limit or dismantle Iran's nuclear program?
After his arrival in Iran on Wednesday, Grosi also organized meetings with Abbas Araghchi, head of the Iranian nuclear negotiation team, and Kazem Gharibadi, vice-minister of foreign affairs.
Thursday, Araghchi described his meeting with Grosi on the X social media platform as “a constructive discussion”, adding: “In the coming months, the agency can play an important role in the peaceful resolution of the Iranian nuclear file.”
US negotiator Steve Witkoff said on Tuesday that Iran should “stop and dismantle its nuclear enrichment and militarization program”.
However, Tehran considers the complete cessation of its nuclear activities – even in civil zones – a “red line”.
ADVERTISEMENTWitkoff, who had called on Monday a limitation of the enrichment capacity of Iranian uranium, refrained from asking for a total dismantling of the nuclear program.
Araghchi in Moscow
Before the negotiations on Saturday, the Iranian Minister for Foreign Affairs went to Moscow on Thursday.
Araghchi said the main goal of his visit was to “transmit a written message” from the supreme chief Ali Khamenei to Vladimir Putin.
This coincides with “recent developments and indirect negotiations” between Iran and the United States. He added: “We have always organized close consultations with our Russian friends on nuclear issues, and this is now a good opportunity to continue these discussions with Russian officials.”
ADVERTISEMENTRussia is one of the original signatories of the 2015 International Nuclear Agreement with Iran.
The historic agreement saw Iran receiving a repair of sanctions in exchange for limits of its nuclear activities, but the pact actually collapsed after the American withdrawal in 2018.
The IAEA confirmed that Iran had joined its commitments to the agreement until the American withdrawal.
Donald Trump, who returned to the White House in January, expressed his interest in negotiating a new agreement with Iran, but warned that if diplomacy fails, the United States can resort to the country's bomb.
ADVERTISEMENTAccording to IAEA, Iran is the only country enriching uranium at 60% despite not having nuclear weapons, a level dangerously close to the 90% necessary to produce a nuclear bomb.
At the same time, Tehran continues to store large amounts of fissile materials.
The 2015 nuclear agreement had capped the enrichment of Iranum uranium at 3.67%.
