The U.S. State Department announced that Iran's refusal to allow international nuclear inspectors access to its most controversial nuclear sites complicates President Joe Biden's administration's goal of returning to the 2015 nuclear deal. A State Department spokesperson told the Washington Free Beacon on Friday, in response to a question about the Biden administration's stance on Iran's violations of the nuclear agreement: "Iran wants to return to a diplomatic solution, but it continues to take steps to make that more difficult."
Iran is imposing restrictions on access to its nuclear sites, creating a dispute between the regime and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which inspects Iran's sites as part of the original nuclear agreement. Since the United States withdrew from the nuclear deal in 2018 under former President Donald Trump, Tehran has engaged in repeated conflicts with the IAEA and violated the agreement by producing highly enriched uranium, a key component in making nuclear weapons.
Iran's nuclear transgressions have elicited stark international reactions from European nations, which stated in a joint statement last month that they still "feel deep concern over Iran's ongoing violations of its nuclear commitments." The United States did not sign this European statement but expressed similar concerns about Tehran's uranium enrichment rush and keeping its nuclear sites secret.
The U.S. spokesperson stated, "We continue to call on Iran to allow the IAEA immediate access to the targeted sites. The United States has made clear its readiness to quickly reach and implement an understanding on mutual return to full compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (nuclear deal)." The spokesperson explained that "access to and inspection of Iranian sites is essential for the IAEA to maintain continuity of monitoring activities related to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, facilitating the swift implementation of any understanding regarding mutual return to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action."
Meanwhile, Iran continues to push the Biden administration for sanctions relief as a gesture of goodwill before resuming nuclear talks. U.S. envoy to Iran Robert Malley held talks with his South Korean counterpart this week regarding Iran's desire to secure approximately $7 billion in frozen assets. The United States will have to relax sanctions to complete the deal, and Iranian leaders have made it clear that they expect this outcome before negotiations resume.
