Iran might accept US IAEA inspectors if nuclear deal reached

DUBAI: Iran might allow the U.N. atomic watchdog to send U.S. inspectors to Iranian sites if Tehran's talks with Washington succeed, Iran's nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami said on Wednesday.

AI Brief

Iran and the US are preparing for a sixth round of nuclear talks, with hopes of positive progress.
Iran may allow US inspectors if a deal is reached but currently bars them due to tensions.
Iran insists uranium enrichment is vital for its civilian energy program and won't give it up.

Tehran and Washington are expected to hold a sixth round of talks to solve a decades-long dispute over Iran's nuclear programme, with U.S. President Donald Trump predicting "good news".

"It is normal that inspectors from hostile countries are not allowed, but if a nuclear deal is reached, we might allow American inspectors working for the International Atomic Energy Agency to visit our nuclear sites," Eslami told a press conference in Tehran.

The two countries have clashed over the issue of uranium enrichment in Iran, which Washington says is a possible pathway to building nuclear weapons and must be brought to zero. Tehran maintains its nuclear programme is exclusively for civilian purposes and views its enrichment industry as a red line.

"Enrichment is the foundation and pillar of the country's nuclear industry. Suppose someone is allowed to have an electricity substation and network, but not allowed to establish a power plant," Eslami said.