Silence is Not an Option: Tehran Blasts IAEA Over Last Year's Stealth Attacks
Iran's nuclear head has signaled a conditional readiness to dilute the country’s 60% enriched uranium, provided international sanctions are completely removed, while simultaneously accusing global watchdogs of bias.
In a significant diplomatic maneuver, Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), announced on Monday that the Islamic Republic is prepared, in principle, to dilute its stockpiles of uranium enriched to 60% purity. However, this potential concession comes with a heavy price tag: the total and unequivocal removal of all international sanctions currently crippling the Iranian economy. Speaking amid heightened regional tensions and ongoing indirect negotiations with the United States in Muscat, Eslami framed the offer as a test of Western sincerity. While signaled as a move toward de-escalation, the statement was paired with a fierce condemnation of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for its failure to protect Iranian facilities from military strikes in 2025. This dual approach reveals a regime attempting to leverage its technical nuclear advances to break a decade-long economic blockade.
The Dilution Condition and Oman Negotiations
The core of Eslami's declaration centers on the "possible dilution" of highly enriched uranium, a material that experts warn is only a short technical step away from weapons-grade levels. "This matter depends on whether all sanctions are lifted in return or not," Eslami told reporters in Tehran, responding to questions about the latest round of indirect talks in Oman. He emphasized that technical and nuclear issues are currently being discussed alongside complex political matters, but clarified that transferring enriched uranium abroad has "not been on the agenda at all."
Despite rumors of a possible freeze, the Iranian leadership insists that any nuclear rollback must yield "tangible and significant" economic benefits. Eslami maintained that Iran’s nuclear activities remain entirely within the framework of international safeguards and that the country expects its "inherent rights" to peaceful technology to be respected. The negotiations in Muscat, led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, are reportedly at a crossroads, with Washington demanding substantial concessions before any relief is granted.
Accountability for the June Attacks
A major point of contention highlighted by Eslami is the IAEA’s perceived "silence" following the joint U.S. and Israeli air strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June 2025. Eslami argued that the agency has an "outstanding obligation" to condemn the destruction of facilities that were under its own monitoring and safeguards. "If Iran acts under the supervision of the Agency and within the framework of its credibility, the Agency cannot remain silent about this incident," Eslami asserted, warning that such a stance damages the UN body's reputation.
He revealed that while the Supreme National Security Council has authorized inspectors to visit sites that were not targeted in the June war, access to damaged facilities remains a matter of ongoing dispute. Eslami called for the IAEA to establish clear protocols for inspecting facilities that have been subjected to military aggression, arguing that the agency currently lacks the authority to demand oversight of destroyed installations. As the Board of Governors prepares for its first meeting of 2026, Tehran is clearly using its cooperation as a bargaining chip, insisting that the watchdog must first "clarify its stance" on the strikes before full transparency is restored at sites like Natanz and Fordow.