UN Nuclear Watchdog, Iranian Officials Meet in Vienna

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)
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UN Nuclear Watchdog, Iranian Officials Meet in Vienna

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)

The head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said he met with his Iranian counterpart in Vienna for talks about an ongoing investigation into man made uranium particles found at undeclared sites in Iran.

“Dialogue has restarted with Iran on clarification of outstanding safeguards issues,” Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), tweeted Monday night.

He said he had met with Mohammad Eslami, vice president and head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization. Along with the statement, Grossi posted photos of himself, Eslami and other negotiators.

The IAEA has for years sought answers from Iran to its questions about the uranium particles. US intelligence agencies, Western nations and the IAEA have said Iran ran an organized nuclear weapons program until 2003. Iran has long denied ever seeking nuclear weapons, maintaining that its nuclear program is peaceful, reported The Associated Press.

The probe has been a sticking point in negotiations to revive the 2015 deal between the Iranian Republic and world powers. Iran’s hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi said in August that the IAEA’s investigation into the issue must be halted in order for Iran to recommit to the deal.

Earlier this month, a report from the IAEA to member states criticized Iran’s lack of engagement with the IAEA on the issue. Because Iranian leaders had not offered “credible” explanations for the presence of these particles, the report said the IAEA “is not in a position to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful.”



UN Nuclear Chief in Tehran ahead of Fresh Iran-US Talks

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi speaks during a press conference on the opening day of his agency's quarterly Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, Austria, March 3, 2025. REUTERS/Elisabeth Mandl
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi speaks during a press conference on the opening day of his agency's quarterly Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, Austria, March 3, 2025. REUTERS/Elisabeth Mandl
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UN Nuclear Chief in Tehran ahead of Fresh Iran-US Talks

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi speaks during a press conference on the opening day of his agency's quarterly Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, Austria, March 3, 2025. REUTERS/Elisabeth Mandl
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi speaks during a press conference on the opening day of his agency's quarterly Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, Austria, March 3, 2025. REUTERS/Elisabeth Mandl

UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi met the head of Iran's atomic energy agency, Mohammad Eslami, on Thursday ahead of a fresh round of nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington.

Iranian and US delegations are to gather in Rome on Saturday for a second round of Omani-mediated negotiations, a week after the longtime foes held their highest-level talks since US President Donald Trump abandoned a landmark nuclear accord in 2018, AFP said.

There were no immediate details on Grossi's meeting with Eslami, but Iran's reformist Shargh newspaper described his visit as "strategically significant at the current juncture".

On Wednesday, Grossi met with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who led the first round of talks with US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff on Saturday.

Araghchi said he had had a "useful" meeting with the International Atomic Energy Agency chief.

"The IAEA can play a crucial role in peaceful settlement of the Iranian nuclear file in the coming months," he said.

Araghchi called on the IAEA chief to "keep the agency away from politics" in the face of "spoilers" seeking to "derail current negotiations". He did not elaborate.

Grossi said their meeting was "important".

"Cooperation with IAEA is indispensable to provide credible assurances about the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program at a time when diplomacy is urgently needed," he said on X.

'Not far' from possessing bomb

Before heading to Iran, Grossi told French newspaper Le Monde that Tehran was "not far" from possessing a nuclear bomb.

Western governments have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire a nuclear weapons capability, an ambition Tehran has consistently denied.

A year after Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran began rolling back its own commitments under the agreement, which gave it relief from sanctions in return for IAEA-monitored restrictions on its nuclear activities.

In its latest report, the IAEA said Iran had an estimated 274.8 kilograms (605 pounds) of uranium enriched to up to 60 percent.

That level far exceeds the 3.67 percent enrichment ceiling set by the 2015 deal, but still falls short of the 90 percent threshold required for a nuclear warhead.

Since he returned to office in January, Trump has revived his "maximum pressure" policy of punishing economic sanctions against Iran.

In March, he sent a letter to Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei urging talks and warning of possible military action if Iran refused.

On Thursday, the New York Times reported that Trump had blocked an Israeli plan to strike Iranian nuclear facilities in favor of seeking a negotiated deal.

'Conflicting positions'

On Tuesday, Khamenei cautioned that while the talks with the United States had started well, they could yet prove fruitless.

"The negotiations may or may not yield results," he said.

On Wednesday, Araghchi said Iran's enrichment of uranium was not up for discussion after Witkoff called for a halt.

Witkoff had previously demanded only that Iran return to the 3.67 percent enrichment ceiling set by the 2015 deal.

Araghchi said he hoped to start negotiations on the framework of a possible agreement, but that this required "constructive positions" from the United States.

"If we continue to (hear) contradictory and conflicting positions, we are going to have problems," he warned.

On Thursday, Iran's top diplomat headed to Moscow on a "pre-planned" visit to the Tehran ally.

The Kremlin said that Russia stood ready to do "everything" in its power to help resolve the standoff over Iran's nuclear program.