IAEA: Iran Will Not Allow Inspectors

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) "could not find a way forward" in convincing the Iranian government to allow inspectors to verify it is not developing nuclear weapons, IAEA Chief Inspector Herman Nacarts said, according to the Associated Press.

IAEA representatives said Iran would not allow UN inspectors to visit an important nuclear location in Parchin, south of the Iranian capital, Tehran. They say they have been “trying hard to uncover a possible military component in the Iranian nuclear program.” 

Tehran claims that the country’s nuclear program is strictly peaceful, while the West has long suspected that it is aimed at developing nuclear weapons.  

“Unfortunately, Iran has refused our request to visit Parchin,” IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano said. Tehran has not yet officially commented on the issue.

It has been suspected that it is the Parchin location that has been used in the recent years to test nuclear devices related to developing nuclear weapons.

The EU and U.S. have imposed extensive sanctions against Iran, embargoing Iranian oil and freezing the activities of Iranian state banks, crippling the Islamic Republic’s ability to trade with other nations.