Iran to allow inspection at heavy water reactor

UN nuclear inspectors banned earlier this year by Iran from visiting a heavy water reactor will now be allowed to inspect it before the end of July, the International Atomic Energy Agency said today.

In a further sign of compromise, the IAEA said the country also agreed to answer questions on past experiments that the international community fears could be linked to a weapons programme.

The IAEA – the UN’s nuclear monitor – said Iran promised the concessions, including the inspection of the Arak reactor, in a meeting this week between its officials and a senior delegation from the Vienna-based agency.

In talks between Iranian officials and IAEA deputy director general Olli Heinonen, “agreement was reached on … a visit of agency inspectors to the heavy water research reactor at Arak by the end of July,” said an IEAE statement.

The two sides also agreed on how “to resolve remaining issues regarding Iran’s past plutonium experiments,” appointing new inspectors in the place of those banned by Iran earlier this year, finalising ways of fuller IAEA supervision of uranium enrichment activities.

Remaining issues include “uranium contamination found on equipment at a specific location,” said the agency, alluding to traces of enriched uranium at a military site.