IAEA should refrain from making Iran-related documents public: Russian diplomat

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has urged the UN nuclear agency to refrain from disclosing any Iran-related documents not meant to be made public.

Ryabkov made the remarks while speaking to reporters on Monday in reaction to a move by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to publish a confidential report on Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility, Russia's state-owned news agency TASS reported.

"We always express and point to concerns when information and documents, which contain restricted data and aren’t meant for public use, are leaked to the public and turn into a news topic," the diplomat said.

He added that the leakage of confidential information is in line with "the West’s politicization attempts" and emphasized that the IAEA cannot operate in this way.

"There is no reason to depart from the normal professional course on the issue," Ryabkov pointed out.

The Russian diplomat's remarks came after IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, in a confidential report on Wednesday, accused Iran of making an undeclared change to the interconnection between the two clusters of advanced machines enriching uranium to up to 60% purity at its Fordow plant.

In an interview with Iran's state TV on Friday, Iran’s nuclear chief warned that the IAEA chief's "unprofessional and unacceptable" behavior would harm his reputation and that of the agency.

Mohammad Eslami, who heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), said Iran objects to the political issues dictated by Grossi and has written a "letter to the agency that an inspector... who has inspected our facilities, has made a mistake and given an incorrect report."

Iran warns IAEA against 'unprofessional, unacceptable' behavior

Iran and the IAEA are currently in a dispute triggered by the agency’s Israeli-influenced accusations.

"But yet again the agency's director general released this issue to the media," the AEOI chief said.

The accusation came despite a letter sent by Iran to the IAEA back in November, informing the agency of a decision to start enriching uranium to the purity level of 60% at its Fordow nuclear facility.

Moreover, Iran has fitted and launched new centrifuges at two empty halls in Fordow and Natanz nuclear sites. The halls, under Iran’s commitment to the terms of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), had been vacant but centrifuges have been installed there once again.

In February 2021, former Iranian nuclear chief also slammed the leak of confidential information of the member states to the IAEA, urging the nuclear watchdog to review its mechanisms to prevent information leakage.

Iran: IAEA should review mechanisms to ensure confidentiality of member states’ information

Iran’s nuclear chief calls on the IAEA to ensure confidentiality of member states

“Unfortunately, the leak of the agency's confidential information [on member states] to world media is an unpleasant trend that has been going on for years, and in this regard, the Islamic Republic of Iran has on numerous occasions submitted its verbal and written protests to the agency,” Ali Akbar Salehi said. 

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