IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said agency inspectors will oversee Iran's nuclear sites, calling it part of the memorandum of understanding with Washington. The statement follows days of mixed signals about the deal's scope and implementation.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said Wednesday morning that agency inspectors will monitor Iranian nuclear sites under the memorandum of understanding with Washington, his most explicit link yet between the IAEA's role and the emerging U.S.-Iran framework. Speaking from the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan, Grossi stated the MOU explicitly places all nuclear activities at facilities with nuclear material under IAEA supervision, with inspections set to begin 'tomorrow, in a week, or in ten days.'
The statement sharpens the IAEA position after days of mixed signals. As The Zioneer reported on June 23 at 22:24 Jerusalem, Grossi said on Tuesday evening that the agency would conduct tests at Iranian facilities — without specifying the MOU as the basis. By Wednesday 22:24 Jerusalem, he was citing the Islamabad Memorandum signed by both presidents as the legal foundation for access, directly contradicting Tehran's official refusal to allow IAEA inspectors.
The U.S.-Iran MOU has been reported to extend beyond the nuclear file. A senior U.S. official told i24NEWS on June 12 that the MOU covers 'the entire region, including Lebanon,' and expressed confidence Israel would join. Separate reports, including from three Israeli officials to Reuters, indicated that Israel and Lebanon are discussing a U.S.-backed pilot for Lebanese forces to take over areas of southern Lebanon after an Israeli withdrawal — a regional security track not directly addressed by Grossi.
The IAEA's operational details on the ground — access protocols, inspection timelines, and the ability to remove enriched uranium — remain unspecified, and the full MOU text has not been published. The gap between Grossi's public timetable and Iran's official stance also remains unresolved.
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