IAEA 'worried about increasing tensions' over Iran

The UN's nuclear watchdog said Monday it was "worried about increasing tensions" over Iran's nuclear programme, after Tehran said it might stop respecting more elements of a 2015 international deal.

"I... hope that ways can be found to reduce current tensions through dialogue," International Atomic Energy Agency director general Yukiya Amano said in a speech opening the agency's quarterly board of governors meeting.

On May 8, Iran announced it no longer considered itself bound to keep to the limits of stocks of heavy water and enriched uranium which were agreed as part of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Speaking later to journalists, Amano said the accord was "under tension" and confirmed that Iran's "production rate (of uranium) is increasing", although he could not give an exact figure.

Tehran's move last month came a year after US President Donald Trump pulled out of the deal. Washington has also reinforced economic sanctions against the Islamic republic.

Iran has also said that if the other parties to the JCPOA do not speed up work on mitigating the effects of US sanctions, by early July it may stop abiding by restrictions on the level to which it can enrich uranium and on modifications to its Arak heavy water reactor.

Two weeks ago, the latest inspections report by the IAEA said that while stocks of uranium and heavy water had increased, they were still within the limits set by the JCPOA.

However, Amano's speech on Monday differed from past statements because it did not explicitly say that Iran was abiding by its nuclear-related commitments under the 2015 deal.

Because of Iran's May 8 statement, "it is inappropriate for me to make the same statement of business as usual", Amano told reporters.

However, he stressed it was not the IAEA's responsibility to determine whether or not Iran was violating the JCPOA.

The latest IAEA report noted that "technical discussions... are ongoing" with Iran in relation to its installation of up to 33 advanced IR-6 centrifuges. But it did not specify the content of these discussions.

In Tehran Monday, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif warned Monday that those waging "economic war" against Tehran through US sanctions could not expect to "remain safe".

Zarif was speaking after talks with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on the future of the JCPOA.

Maas acknowledged that the economic benefits Tehran hoped for from the deal were now "more difficult to obtain" but urged Iran to fully respect the agreement.

The JCPOA was struck between Iran and six major powers -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States -- in 2015.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have worsened in recent weeks.

The United States has beefed up its military presence in the Middle East in response to alleged threats from the Islamic republic.

German FM meets Iran's Zarif to discuss nuclear deal
Tehran (AFP) June 10, 2019 - German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas held talks Monday with his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif on the future of the 2015 nuclear deal which he described as "extraordinarily important" for Europe.

The two shook hands in front of cameras before their closed-door meeting at the foreign ministry in Tehran, AFP reporters said.

The nuclear deal is "extraordinarily important" for Europe's security, Maas told reporters overnight after arriving in Tehran on the last leg of a regional tour that took him to Iraq, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.

But he added: "We do not want Iran to have nuclear weapons."

The nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was struck between Iran and six major powers -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States -- in 2015.

It saw Iran scale down its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.

But last year the United State unilaterally withdrew from the deal and reimposed sanction on Iran.

Tehran has urged Europe to uphold commitments made under the deal and help Iran circumvent US sanctions.

Iran has also threatened to scale down its nuclear commitments if its interests are not met.

According to Maas, Germany and its European partners "have made the greatest effort to meet (their) commitments".

He acknowledged that the economic benefits Tehran hoped for from the deal were now "more difficult to obtain" but urged Iran to fully respect the agreement.

It is in Iran's "political and strategic interest to maintain this agreement and the dialogue with Europe," he said.

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Man on a mediation mission: Japan's Abe heads to Iran
Tokyo (AFP) June 10, 2019
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe heads to Iran this week on a rare diplomatic mission, hoping to ease tensions between the Islamic Republic and Tokyo's key ally Washington. Tehran is locked in a bitter standoff with the US after president Donald Trump withdrew from a landmark nuclear deal last year. Washington has now reimposed sanctions and shifted troops to the region, putting military and economic pressure on Iran, including by forcing US allies like Japan to stop purchasing Iranian oil. ... read more