VIENNA, Austria—Britain, France and Germany will seek to censure Iran over its lack of cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog at its board meeting from Monday despite US opposition, diplomats told AFP.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Tehran is the only non-nuclear weapon state to enrich uranium to 60 percent, while it keeps accumulating large uranium stockpiles.
That is approaching the enrichment levels of 90 percent needed for atomic weapons. It is also well above the authorised 3.67 percent used for nuclear power stations.
Iran has always denied wanting to acquire a nuclear weapon, but the rapid expansion of its nuclear programme has no “credible civilian justification,” said one diplomat who asked not to be named.
Diplomats told AFP that submitting a motion against Iran at the Vienna meeting was driven by an “urgency to react to the gravity of the situation”.
The planned resolution comes after the IAEA board passed the last one of its kind in November 2022.
Even though Iran continued to significantly ramp up its nuclear program since then, the IAEA’s board has refrained from a censure.
At the last board meeting in March, European powers decided to shelve their plans to confront Iran due to a lack of support from Washington.
The United States denies it is hampering European efforts to hold Tehran accountable but fears a censure could aggravate Middle East tensions ahead of presidential elections in November, diplomats say.
Cooperation between Iran and the IAEA has severely deteriorated in recent years, with the UN nuclear watchdog struggling for assurances that Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful.
Diplomats say maintaining the current policy of inaction amid Iran’s escalation is no longer tenable and the US position could change ahead of the vote scheduled for later this week.
In May, IAEA head Rafael Grossi visited Iran in a bid to improve cooperation, calling for “concrete results… soon”.
In the meantime, the death of Iran’s president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash last month has put negotiations on hold.
Diplomats, however, suggest Iran is using the accident as an excuse to stall.
The draft resolution obtained by AFP covers all the points of contention.
The confidential draft says it is “essential and urgent” that Tehran provides “technically credible explanations” for the presence of uranium particles found at two undeclared locations in Iran.
Furthermore, Iran has to “reverse its withdrawal of the designations of several experienced Agency inspectors”, and “without delay” reconnect the cameras used to monitor nuclear activities.
The draft also notes the “concerns” surrounding “recent public statements made in Iran… regarding its technical capabilities to produce nuclear weapons and possible changes to Iran’s nuclear doctrine.”
