Iaea board censures iran for not complying with nuclear obligations

Iaea board censures iran for not complying with nuclear obligations

The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran and the Foreign Ministry state that Tehran has ‘no choice but to respond to this political resolution’; U.S. embassy in Jerusalem restricts staff movements due to security concerns amid heightened tensions.

The UN nuclear watchdog’s board of governors on Thursday formally found that Iran is not complying with its nuclear obligations for the first time in 20 years, a move that could lead to further tensions and set in motion an effort to restore UN sanctions on Tehran later this year.

Iran reacted immediately, saying it will establish a new enrichment facility ‘in a secure location’ and that ‘other measures are also being planned’.

‘The Islamic Republic of Iran has no choice but to respond to this political resolution,’ the Iranian Foreign Ministry and the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said in a joint statement. U.S. President Donald Trump previously warned that Israel or America could carry out air strikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations failed to reach an agreement — and some American personnel and their families have begun leaving the region over the tensions, which come ahead of a new round of Iran-U.S. talks Sunday in Oman.

Nineteen countries on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s board, which represents the agency’s member nations, voted for the resolution, according to diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the outcome of the closed-doors vote. Russia, China and Burkina Faso opposed it, 11 abstained and two did not vote.

The resolution was put forward by France, the U.K., Germany and the U.S.

Dangerous region

Meanwhile, the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem announced it was restricting staff movements after President Donald Trump said U.S. personnel were being moved from the potentially ‘dangerous’ West Asia.

‘Due to the increased regional tensions, United States government employees and their family members are restricted from travel outside the greater Tel Aviv (area)... Jerusalem, and Be’er Sheva areas until further notice,’ the embassy said.