Iran’s nuke official prefers IAEA to ‘keep out’

An Iranian official on Tuesday rebukes the chief of the UN atomic agency for demanding snap inspections of Iran’s nuclear sites, saying the request hinders efforts to reach an agreement with world powers, state TV reports.

The United States and five other world powers face an end-of-the-month deadline to reach a framework agreement with Iran on its nuclear program. Western nations suspect Tehran is pursuing a nuclear weapons capability alongside the civilian program. Iran denies such allegations, insisting its nuclear activities are entirely peaceful.

Earlier this month Yukiya Amano, the head of the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency, said Tehran should agree to snap inspections to reassure the international community.

Iran’s nuclear spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi says Amano’s comments harm the delicate negotiations. “It would be much better if Amano only talked about the IAEA’s seasonal and monthly reports,” he says, according to state TV.

— AP