[97208] Tension surrounding Rafael Grossi's demand for renewed inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities

Tension surrounding Rafael Grossi's demand for renewed inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities

In a series of statements released on Tuesday, Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), emphasized in an interview with the Japanese NHK network that the organization intends to carry out inspections at Iran's nuclear facilities as soon as possible. According to reports by Vahid Online and Iran International, Grossi prioritized "identifying and verifying the whereabouts of highly enriched uranium."

News agencies affiliated with the Iranian regime, such as IRNA and Fars News, presented Grossi's words as "allegations and an intrusive approach." Fars News specifically noted that Grossi claims that since some of the storage facilities were "attacked and partially destroyed" by the US and Israel, the agency is required to re-examine access routes to the materials. Conversely, Fars News emphasized that the Iranian Foreign Ministry denied any coordination for visits to facilities damaged as a result of "American and Israeli military aggression."

The government narrative in Iran, as reflected in آخرین خبر and SNN.ir, stresses that Tehran will not allow such access. At the same time, reports in RFI فارسی point to a gap between the claims of American officials, such as Vice President J.D. Vance who hinted at an Iranian agreement, and Tehran's official position which emphasizes that cooperation with the IAEA will continue only within the framework of existing procedures and without granting free access.

In the internal arena in Iran, criticism toward Grossi is particularly sharp. According to آخرین خبر آذربایجان, the spokesman for the National Security Committee in the Iranian Parliament, Ebrahim Rezaei, attacked Grossi severely and called "not to allow him to enter into negotiations," while accusing him of behavior "more insolent than the CENTCOM command."