Following the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors meeting on Wednesday, November 20, in Vienna, and the circulation of a draft resolution by three major European countries against the Iranian regime’s nuclear program, the regime is attempting to prevent its adoption through intimidation and threats.
IRNA, the regime’s official news agency, under the headline “Details of the Anti-Iranian Resolution Draft by the Troika at the Board of Governors,” underscored this anxiety and reported: “This document calls on Tehran to take immediate and necessary actions to address alleged safeguards issues, provide credible explanations regarding uranium particles of human origin found at two undeclared sites in Iran, and inform the Agency about the current locations of nuclear materials or contaminated equipment.”
The regime’s primary concern is the potential consequences of this resolution. The state-run newspaper Setareh Sobh wrote on November 20, “The Europeans, with U.S. support, intend to pass a resolution against Iran at the Board of Governors, potentially referring Iran’s nuclear case to the UN Security Council. Should this occur, it would have severe repercussions for Iran and its economy. Under Resolution 2231, if the three European countries activate the snapback mechanism, the effects of six prior resolutions (1696, 1737, 1747, 1803, 1929, and 1835) would be reinstated, increasing sanctions on the country. In such circumstances, Iran must undertake a significant shift in foreign relations and nuclear policies, distancing itself from Russia in the Ukraine conflict by declaring neutrality.”
Amidst its ongoing deadlock, the clerical regime has grown frantic, oscillating between deception and empty promises on one side and reckless threats on the other.
On one hand, the regime promised Rafael Grossi, the IAEA’s Director General, that it will not stockpile 60% enriched uranium beyond its current levels. On the other hand, it threatens to change its nuclear policies and pursue bomb-making. The goal is to prevent the resolution’s adoption at the Board of Governors at any cost.
In these theatrical measures, the regime has intensified its repeated threats of countermeasures, such as barring nuclear inspectors, increasing enrichment, and pursuing a path toward bomb-making.
According to Agence France-Presse, Abbas Araghchi condemned the decision of the three countries—Germany, France, and the UK—to propose the resolution during a conversation with his French counterpart, Jean-Noel Barrot, warning that this move “will only make the issue more complicated.” Araghchi also stated in a phone call with Grossi that “if the other parties ignore Iran’s goodwill and interactive approach and put non-constructive measures on the agenda in the meeting of the Board of Governors through the issuance of a resolution, Iran will respond appropriately and proportionately.”
Hassan Ghashghavi, the head of the regime’s parliamentary nuclear committee, also threatened, “If a resolution is prepared against our country at the IAEA Board of Governors, we will undoubtedly and immediately take actions that will certainly be regrettable.”
More candid than others, Mohammad Javad Larijani, an advisor of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and a senior expert on the regime’s strategic and international policies, stated on state television on November 18, “They are effectively drafting a resolution against Iran. If they believe we can develop military nuclear capability within 48 hours, they are not mistaken; we could shorten it to 24 hours, making it a deterrent. Our nuclear capability is neither negotiable nor subject to snapback mechanisms. We will not retreat from progress in this field. Our nuclear capabilities must be continuously renewed and advanced. If threats to our nuclear capabilities become serious, know that we will revise our nuclear deterrent policies.”
What has compelled the regime to resort to these fear-driven threats is the fact that the issuance of a resolution against it at the IAEA Board of Governors could lead, in subsequent steps, to the referral of the regime’s nuclear file back to the UN Security Council and the activation of the snapback sanctions mechanism. This prospect raises the likelihood of the reimposition of widespread and comprehensive sanctions against the clerical regime.