Kamalvandi: US move to block Iran from IAEA meeting 'malicious' and 'childish'
Tehran - BORNA - The Hindu, citing Agence France-Presse (AFP), reported that Behrouz Kamalvandi, a senior official at the AEOI, strongly criticized Washington's move on Monday to block the organization's chief, Mohammad Eslami, from participating in the IAEA annual conference in Vienna.
Kamalvandi stated, "Preventing access to the General Conference sets a precedent that will affect all members. This is exactly why we must stand up against such political pressures and bullying."
The senior AEOI official added, "This recent malicious act by the US government can only be interpreted as childish behavior."
On the other hand, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright on Monday in Vienna confirmed the ban, announcing that Washington opposes the presence of the AEOI chief at the annual conference.
Justifying this move, which violates international organizational norms, Wright claimed to reporters, "He is a sanctioned individual, and we do not want sanctioned individuals to evade their sanctions. He had requested a sanctions waiver, which was denied."
Tensions over this issue unfold as the IAEA General Conference is traditionally an inclusive meeting for all member states. Washington's move to block access for a member state's delegation has raised concerns about the impact of unilateral political pressures on the independence and functioning of international institutions.
Previously, at the opening of the Agency's annual General Conference, Reza Najafi, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to International Organizations in Vienna, emphasized in response to US hostile measures, "This pressure is applied by the exact same country that just a few days ago was the main sponsor of a politically motivated resolution against Iran at the Board of Governors, the same country that has itself participated in aggressive acts against Iran's nuclear facilities and clearly violated UN Security Council resolutions as well as numerous resolutions of this Conference."
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