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February 21, 2026 •• 1 minute ago •• Read for 3 minutes

(Bloomberg) —Iran is escalating to International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors to stop reducing intrusive surveillance altogether and become the first major foreign policy agenda for the Biden administration. I stopped braking.

International Atomic Energy Agency Secretary-General Rafael Mariano Grossi said on Sunday without persuading Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to withdraw the law suspending comprehensive snap inspections and other surveillance measures from Tuesday. The talks in Tehran have ended. Nevertheless, he described the results as “good” and said at a press conference in Vienna that he had won a three-month partial grace period that gave diplomats space to resolve disputes. Stated.

“The additional protocol will be suspended,” Grossi said. “There is less access. Comparing additional protocols with this temporary understanding, of course, there are differences, some to lose and some to maintain. The important thing is that the inspector has something to gain. is.”

The compromise follows the US and European plea for Iran to continue to comply with the IAEA’s so-called additional protocol to provide diplomatic opportunities. The Biden administration said it was ready to meet with Iran to discuss “diplomatic progress” to return to the nuclear deal, the first step towards easing tensions.

“This is not a replacement for what we had before. This is a temporary solution in the hope that we can go back to what we had in the future,” Grossi said. “We need to be honest with what we agree. What we agree with is feasible and helps to fill this gap today. But for a sustainable situation, political negotiations Is needed and it’s not up to me. “

Iran’s willingness to allow unprecedented international surveillance was widely seen by Western nations as the most important part of the atomic agreement agreed in 2015. It continued to allow a wide range of IAEA safeguards.

Inspectors regularly call snap inspections to monitor the uranium mine and visit centrifuge workshops. A special online monitoring tool installed at the Iranian enrichment facility collects and stores a set of validation data.

Ending access to the IAEA under the Additional Protocol could bring the conflict closer to a military turning point by raising suspicions about Iran’s nuclear program. Tehran has recently launched a new fuel manufacturing venture with increased uranium enrichment levels and advanced new equipment. All of these are dual-use activities that help with the production of nuclear power and bombs.

Grossi, who did not extend the provisions of the Additional Protocol while international observers remained in Iran to explain the declared stockpile stewardship, was an inspector who exercised the strictest surveillance mechanism ever negotiated. End the ability.

Earlier on Sunday, Iran reiterated that it would not discuss an agreement on the matter with the Biden administration until Washington officially rejoined as a participant and lifted Trump-era sanctions on Iran’s economy.

“When everyone has carried out some of their obligations, consultations will take place, and those consultations are not about changing the terms of the agreement, regional issues, or missile issues. Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Jabad Zarif said. I’m not going to discuss these in an interview with state-owned Press TV. “

Negotiations with the United States will have to address the need for assurance that Washington will not stop trading again, Zarif added. President Donald Trump has separated the United States from an agreement aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

In an interview with CBS News on Sunday, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said, “Currently, it is Iran that is diplomatically isolated, not the United States, and the ball is in their court.” Stated.

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Iran’s compromise with atomic monitor taps brake on escalation