The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Monday that a temporary arrangement reached with Iran in February that allows the agency to continue with necessary verification and monitoring activities will be extended for one month, expiring on June 24.
Apart from the extension, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told reporters that the agency and Iran have agreed that information collected by the technical equipment at different locations in Tehran is going to be saved and will continue to be under the custody of the agency.
Iran stopped the implementation of the voluntary measures as envisaged in the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, on Feb. 23.
On Feb. 21, the IAEA said that it had reached a temporary bilateral technical understanding with Iran, under which the IAEA could continue with its necessary verification and monitoring activities for up to three months.
Grossi said Monday that this understanding was “even more important now” because a number of things have been happening in Iran since February, in terms of the activities there that have increased “qualitatively and quantitatively.”
Grossi clarified to reporters that the information collected has not been handed over yet, but he also stressed that the agency is not practically “flying blind” since they know what equipment is there and have their own calculations and estimations of what is going on.
“This is not ideal. This is like an emergency device that we came up with in order for us to continue having these monitoring activities,” Grossi said.
