In a reply to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) request to implement safeguards in Iran, Tehran has demanded that the watchdog’s chief, Rafael Grossi, ask the US and Israel to cease their attacks on the country.

According to news agency ISNA, Iran’s representative to the IAEA says on X, “Requesting Iran to unconditionally implement the agency’s safeguards in the current dangerous circumstances is meaningless.

“This request ignores the fact that the agency itself initially decided to suspend the implementation of safeguards and withdraw inspectors ‘for safety reasons’ after the illegal attacks by the US regime and Israel,” the representative adds.

The office stresses: “IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi must first demand that the aggressors — the United States and the Israeli regime — cease attacking or threatening to attack peaceful nuclear facilities under safeguards in order to provide the necessary conditions for the implementation of the agency’s safeguards. As long as the agency and the UN Security Council do not fulfil their assigned responsibilities, Iran has the right to protect its national interests alone.”