Iran, IAEA announce agreement on resuming nuclear inspections

Highlights:

• Key sites bombed in June still off-limits to inspectors
• Deal aimed at paving the way for inspections to resume
• Iran must also account for enriched uranium stockpile
• Europeans threaten to re-impose sanctions if no progress

Iran and the UN nuclear watchdog said on Tuesday they had reached a deal on resuming inspections at sites including those bombed by the US and Israel but gave no specifics, and Tehran warned the West the deal was off if sanctions were re-imposed.

The agreement, struck between International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi at a meeting in Cairo, should in principle pave the way for a full resumption of inspections interrupted by the military strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities in June.

Diplomats warned, however, that the devil was in the detail and neither Grossi not Araqchi provided any at a joint press conference on their agreement covering what the IAEA has been calling "modalities" on how inspections can resume.

"In Cairo today, (I) agreed with Iran's Foreign Minister ... on practical modalities to resume inspection activities in Iran," Grossi said on X at the same time at the press conference. "This is an important step in the right direction."

The agreement comes against the backdrop of an ongoing threat by European powers to re-impose wide-ranging sanctions against Iran that were lifted under a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major powers.

Those European powers - France, Britain and Germany, known as the E3 - have initiated the so-called "snapback" process that is due to run until late this month. They have said they will only hold off on completing it if Iran allows inspections to resume, accounts for its highly enriched uranium stockpile and holds nuclear talks with the United States.

Tuesday's framework deal is aimed at moving towards addressing those first two conditions, but it is unclear whether enough can or will be achieved by this month's deadline to satisfy the Europeans and fend off snapback for the time being.

"Let me emphasize: in the event of any hostile action against Iran — including the reinstatement of cancelled UN Security Council resolutions — Iran will consider these practical steps null and void," Araqchi said in a statement, referring to sanctions resolutions.

While Iran's enrichment sites have been badly damaged or destroyed, it is less clear what has happened to the stockpile, which includes uranium enriched to up to 60% purity, a short step from the roughly 90% of weapons grade.

Iran had enough material enriched to that level before the attacks, if enriched further, for 10 nuclear weapons, according to an IAEA yardstick and data from a quarterly IAEA report sent to member states last week.

Soon after the US and Israeli attacks, Iran's parliament passed a law suspending cooperation with the IAEA and stipulating that any inspections must be approved by Iran's Supreme National Security Council.

Grossi told Reuters in an interview last week that the talks were aimed at reconciling the new obligations that the new Iranian legislation placed on Tehran with Iran's long-standing obligations as a party to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty policed by the IAEA, which Grossi said remained unchanged.