Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), speaks at the board of governors meeting in Vienna, Austria, March 9, 2020. The chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) called on Iran to cooperate immediately and fully with the agency at a board of governors meeting held here on Monday. Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the IAEA, told the meeting that the agency has identified a number of questions related to possible undeclared nuclear material and nuclear-related activities at three locations that have not been declared by Iran. (Xinhua/Photo Credit: Dean Calma / IAEA)
VIENNA, March 9 (Xinhua) -- The chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Monday called on Iran to cooperate immediately and fully with the agency.
Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the IAEA, told a board of governors meeting here that the agency has identified a number of questions related to possible undeclared nuclear material and nuclear-related activities at three locations that have not been declared by Iran.
"The agency sought access to two of the locations. Iran has not provided access to these locations and has not engaged in substantive discussions to clarify the Agency's questions," he said.
"This is a case of denial of access under the additional protocol," said Grossi at a press conference after the meeting.
Additional protocol is a legal document granting the IAEA expanded rights of access to information and sites, enabling its inspectors to provide assurance about both declared and possible undeclared activities, according to the IAEA website.
The director general told reporters that he hoped to be able to engage with Tehran and solve this issue "very soon".
Referring the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Grossi noted Iran's announcement on Jan. 5 after U.S. airstrike killed a top Iranian general in Baghdad that its nuclear program would no longer be "subject to any restrictions in the operational sphere."
"To date, the Agency has not observed any changes to Iran's implementation of its nuclear-related commitments under the JCPOA in connection with this announcement, or in the level of cooperation by Iran in relation to Agency verification and monitoring activities under the JCPOA," said Grossi, referring to the 2015 nuclear deal.
Before its announcement in early January, the Islamic Republic had taken a series of steps reducing its commitments in response to the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal as well as its reimposed sanctions.
