After report of new tunnels, Iranian nuke chief pledges cooperation with international inspectors

The head of Iran’s nuclear program insists that his government will cooperate with international inspectors on any “new activities.”

His statement follows an exclusive Associated Press report about Tehran’s new underground tunnel system near a nuclear enrichment facility.

Speaking to journalists after a cabinet meeting today, Mohammad Eslami of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran seeks to describe the interest in the site as a case of Israel feeling pressured.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran is working under the IAEA safeguards, and whenever [it] wants to start new activities, it will coordinate with the IAEA, and acts accordingly,” Eslami says, using an acronym for the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The IAEA does not respond to questions from the AP about the construction at Natanz, about 225 kilometers (140 miles) south of Tehran. Natanz has been a point of international concern since its existence became known two decades ago.