IAEA Denies Israeli Accusations

The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, denied on Monday that the agency had softened its investigation standards regarding previous Iranian activities, after Israel accused the agency of "yielding to Iranian pressures." Grossi stated, "We have never relaxed our standards. We adhere to them and apply them." He indicated that Iran is delaying the reinstallation of monitoring equipment that was removed by Tehran's order a year ago. Grossi added in a statement to the IAEA's Board of Governors, "What should happen now is a continuous and uninterrupted process leading to the fulfillment of all obligations contained in the joint statement without further delay." It is worth noting that, so far, only a small portion of the equipment that the IAEA had planned to reinstall has been put in place under an agreement announced in a joint statement with Iran in March.