IAEA chief warns of 'great loss' if nuclear deal collapses

The head of the UN nuclear agency has once again confirmed Iran's compliance with the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, warning that any collapse of the deal would be a "great loss."

According to Press TV, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Yukiya Amano made the remarks in a speech to a quarterly meeting of the agency's Board of Governors in Vienna on Monday.

He said the IAEA has been verifying and monitoring Iran's implementation of its nuclear-related commitments under the nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), for more than two years.

"As of today, I can state that Iran is implementing its nuclear-related commitments…If the JCPOA were to fail, it would be a great loss for nuclear verification and for multilateralism," Amano added.

"The JCPOA represents a significant gain for verification," Amano told the closed-door meeting of 35 member states.

He noted that the IAEA has requested Iran to provide further clarifications about its plans to develop the "nuclear fuel cycle related to naval nuclear propulsion."

In a report last month, the UN nuclear agency said Iran had informed the IAEA of a decision "to construct naval nuclear propulsion in future.”

The IAEA chief further said the agency would continue to verify the non-diversion of nuclear material declared by Iran under its Safeguards Agreement.

"We have had access to all the sites and locations which we needed to visit. Evaluations regarding the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran continue," he pointed out.

In a telephone conversation with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Sunday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani once again urged all signatories to the JCPOA to remain committed to their obligations under the deal.

He said, "Tehran will remain committed to its undertakings as long as the opposite sides implement the JCPOA."

SS