Iran nuclear access urged as UN referral sought

IAEA head Rafael Grossi urged Iran on Monday to reengage with the UN nuclear agency as western powers prepared a draft resolution seeking to refer Tehran to the UN Security Council.

Grossi said giving the International Atomic Energy Agency access to key nuclear facilities in Iran would have positive repercussions for the country.

The IAEA has not had access to key nuclear facilities in Iran since Israel, joined by the United States, launched a 12-day conflict in June 2025 that included strikes on nuclear sites. Nuclear facilities have also been hit in the latest war, which erupted on February 28, and the IAEA has repeatedly urged access.

A resolution drafted by the United States, Britain, France and Germany is expected to be submitted and voted on this week. The draft, seen by AFP, seeks to refer Iran to the UN Security Council for failing to comply with its nuclear reporting obligations.

Grossi, speaking after opening the quarterly meeting of the IAEA board of governors, said his work with Iran would continue regardless of the resolution.

Before the June 2025 strikes, the IAEA calculated that Iran possessed about 440 kilogrammes of uranium enriched to 60 percent. That is close to the 90 percent needed to make a bomb and above the 3.67 percent limit set by a now-defunct 2015 agreement with Iran. The fate of the stockpile has remained uncertain since June 2025.

Iran's mission to the UN on X called the draft resolution a “new desperate action” that would bring “no benefit”.

In June, the IAEA board approved a western resolution demanding that Iran immediately provide information and give access to its uranium stockpile and production facilities.