The deputy director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will visit Tehran on Monday for talks on a potential cooperation framework, Iran's foreign minister said Sunday. "A deputy director general of [Rafael] Grossi will come to Tehran tomorrow, while there are no plans to visit any nuclear sites until we reach a framework, and [our] bilateral cooperation will not begin," Abbas Araghchi told reporters after a cabinet meeting, according to the state-run IRNA news agency. He said negotiations with the IAEA will focus on setting the terms for renewed engagement. On June 25, Iran's parliament voted to suspend cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, accusing it of bias toward Israel and the United States amid recent attacks on the country. Araghchi added that Iran's contacts with European countries "are continuing," but dismissed threats from European signatories of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) to trigger the snapback mechanism restoring UN sanctions. "Our position is that snapback is not relevant. In our opinion, Europe is not considered a participant in the JCPOA," he said. The remarks come after Oman-mediated nuclear talks between Iran and the United States were disrupted when Israel launched a surprise attack on June 13, targeting military, nuclear, and civilian sites as well as senior commanders and nuclear scientists. Tehran responded with missile and drone strikes, while the US bombed three Iranian nuclear facilities. The 12-day escalation ended with a US-brokered ceasefire that took effect on June 24. — Agencies
