IAEA head arrives in Tehran

The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Yukia Amano arrived in Tehran Jan. 18.

Amano will meet with senior Iranian officials including Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Ali Akbar Salehi, Iran’s Fars news agency reported.

Spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi earlier said that Amano will not visit any nuclear site.

According to the IAEA, Amano will discuss the IAEA’s role in verifying and monitoring Iran’s nuclear-related commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA, aka nuclear deal) with Iranian officials.

The international sanctions imposed on Iran with regard to its nuclear program have been removed as the JCPOA entered the implementation phase on Jan. 16.

Iran and the P5+1 group of countries (the US, France, the UK, Germany, China, and Russia) in July 2015 agreed a landmark nuclear deal to curb Tehran’s sensitive nuclear activities in return for the lifting of international sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

On Jan. 17 Iran announced that has started implementation of the Additional Protocol of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The Additional Protocol allows unannounced inspections outside of declared nuclear sites and it is seen as a vital tool at the IAEA's disposal to make sure that a country does not have any hidden nuclear work.

/By Trend/