UN nuclear watchdog officials will visit Tehran in the coming days, Iran said on Wednesday.
Mohammed Eslami, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation, said in comments aired by state TV that he hopes an International Atomic Energy Agency visit “can help resolve issues”.
Iran and the IAEA have been at loggerheads as Tehran continues to push ahead with its nuclear activity in breach of its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal, which fell apart four years ago.
Tehran agreed last month to an IAEA visit as the agency seeks answers on the presence of highly-enriched uranium at three undeclared sites.
Days later, the watchdog pressed Iran for urgent answers on its nuclear activity.
“Iran must now provide the necessary co-operation ― no more empty promises,” said Laura Holgate, the IAEA's US representative.
An analyst has told The National the visit may be intended to “distract the domestic population”, as Iran grapples with protests that have posed the biggest threat to the regime since its inception.
“Given how Iran has dangled — and reneged on — IAEA visits in the past, I am sceptical this is anything more than an effort to distract the domestic population and divide the international community,” said Henry Rome, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and expert on Iran.
The nuclear deal broke down after former US president Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement in 2018 and reimposed sanctions.
Iran then began rapidly enriching uranium far in excess of agreed upon levels, despite EU attempts to keep the agreement going.
Tehran has given “ample reason” to doubt it is serious about main obstacles to reviving the deal, Mr Rome added.
Whatever the intentions behind the visit, “it’s unlikely to stop either the fall in the Iranian rial or the rise of international alarm about Iranian regional or nuclear activities”.
Experts say Iran has enough enriched uranium at 60 per cent purity to build one nuclear device. Ninety per cent enrichment is usually required for a bomb, but experts at the US Institute for Science and International Security say it might be possible to build a device at the lower level of 60 per cent.
Its main nuclear sites are at Natanz, in Isfahan province, Fordow enrichment plant near the holy city of Qom and Bushehr plant on the Gulf coast.
Speaking in Abu Dhabi last week, Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan warned “all bets are off” if Iran obtains a nuclear weapon.
“We are in a very dangerous space in the region … you can expect that regional states will certainly look towards how they can ensure their own security,” he said at the World Policy Conference.
The UAE has also called for “explicit” security reassurances from its western allies as Iran further develops its nuclear programme and entrenches itself in the Russian war in Ukraine.
Western co-operation must be long-term and strategic, said Dr Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to President Sheikh Mohamed.
Meanwhile, IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said on Thursday the international organisation will make an all-out effort to stop North Korea's nuclear program and preserve international non-proliferation.
He made the comments as he met South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol during a visit to Seoul, South Korea's presidential office said.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Match info
Huddersfield Town 0
Chelsea 3
Kante (34'), Jorginho (45' pen), Pedro (80')
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
LIGUE 1 FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday
Nice v Angers (9pm)
Lille v Monaco (10.45pm)
Saturday
Montpellier v Paris Saint-Germain (7pm)
Bordeaux v Guingamp (10pm)
Caen v Amiens (10pm)
Lyon v Dijon (10pm)
Metz v Troyes (10pm)
Sunday
Saint-Etienne v Rennes (5pm)
Strasbourg v Nantes (7pm)
Marseille v Toulouse (11pm)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
THE SPECS
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 258hp at 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,550-4,400rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.4L/100km
Price, base: from D215,000 (Dh230,000 as tested)
On sale: now
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
Who is Allegra Stratton?
- Previously worked at The Guardian, BBC’s Newsnight programme and ITV News
- Took up a public relations role for Chancellor Rishi Sunak in April 2020
- In October 2020 she was hired to lead No 10’s planned daily televised press briefings
- The idea was later scrapped and she was appointed spokeswoman for Cop26
- Ms Stratton, 41, is married to James Forsyth, the political editor of The Spectator
- She has strong connections to the Conservative establishment
- Mr Sunak served as best man at her 2011 wedding to Mr Forsyth
The specs: 2018 Renault Koleos
Price, base: From Dh77,900
Engine: 2.5L, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 170hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 233Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.3L / 100km
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
