IAEA inspectors’ return to Iran decided by SNSC

TABNAK, Aug.27 - Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that inspectors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have returned to Iran to monitor the refueling of the Bushehr nuclear plant.

News ID: 6716

Date: 27 August 2025 - 15:48

"The arrival of IAEA inspectors to Iran was carried out by the decision of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) to monitor the fuel replacement of the Bushehr power plant," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Wednesday.

"Decisions have been made regarding the fuel replacement of Bushehr power plant, which must be done under the supervision of the IAEA inspectors " he said.

The Iranian foreign minister also noted that the return of the inspectors would not be in violation of a piece of legislation approved by the Iranian parliament after the US attack on the three major nuclear facilities in June. The piece of legislation called for suspending cooperation with the Agency after Tehran accused its director general's reports for the aggression on the Iranian sites due to his false reports on the peaceful program.

Meanwhile Araghchi highlighted the return of the IAEA inspectors to Iran would not mean the conclusion of a modality between the two sides for cooperation.

"Any kind of cooperation [with IAEA] will be within the framework of the law of the parliament, which will serve the interests of the Iranian nation," the Iranian top diplomat said.

"No final text of agreement has been approved on new cooperation framework between Iran, IAEA," he added.

Earlier on Wednesday,  IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said that the first group of inspectors has returned to Iran and is preparing to resume work at the republic's nuclear facilities.

"Now, the first team of IAEA inspectors is back in Iran, and we are about to restart [our work there]. Of course, when it comes to Iran, as you know, there are many facilities. Some were attacked, some were not. So we are discussing what kind of modalities, practical modalities, can be implemented in order to facilitate the restart of our work," he told Fox News in an interview.

According to reports, It is not yet clear whether these statements mean a formal agreement between Iran and the Agency for the return of inspectors or just a prediction by the Agency's Director General in this regard, Mehr reported.