IAEA Board of Governors
Agenda item 7(d): NPT Safeguards Agreement with the Islamic Republic of Iran
5 March 2025
Statement by H.E Ambassador Ian Biggs, Governor and Resident Representative of Australia to the IAEA
Chair,
Australia remains seriously concerned that Iran continues to fail to comply with its NPT Safeguards obligations, despite abundant time and opportunity to change course.
The Director General’s latest report makes the gravity of the situation clear. This Board has repeatedly decided – most recently last November – that it is ‘essential and urgent’ that Iran take action to fulfill its legal obligations and provide the necessary information and access to resolve its outstanding safeguards issues. Over a lengthy period, Iran has failed to do so.
Iran has not provided technically credible explanations regarding the presence of uranium particles of anthropogenic origin at previously undisclosed locations. Nor has it informed the Agency of the current whereabouts of nuclear material and/or contaminated equipment involved. Owing to Iran’s longstanding non‑cooperation, the Agency’s repeated attempts to resolve the issues related to the Varamin and Turquzabad locations have reached an impasse.
Iran is the only State with significant nuclear activities which is failing to implement Modified Code 3.1. Its refusal to provide design information about planned new nuclear facilities, in contravention of its obligations, remains troubling.
Further, there has been no progress in resolving the nuclear material balance discrepancy related to past uranium metal production experiments conducted at JHL. Nuclear material related to these experiments remains unaccounted for. We urge Iran to work constructively with the Agency to resolve this issue.
We continue to call on Iran to implement the Joint Statement of 4 March 2023, and to fully reverse its decision to withdraw the designation of experienced IAEA inspectors in September 2023, which has seriously affected the Agency’s ability to fulfil its verification mandate.
Chair,
As a result of Iran’s non-compliance with its safeguards obligations, the IAEA remains unable to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful. This unacceptable situation undermines the global non-proliferation regime – and is becoming even more alarming as Iran’s program dramatically accelerates.
It is essential that Iran provide the full and unambiguous cooperation with the Agency required by the resolutions of the Board. We urge Iran to provide this cooperation without delay in order that it can be reflected in the Director General’s upcoming comprehensive and updated assessment, so as to render further action by this Board unnecessary.
Australia again thanks the Director General and the Secretariat for their vital, independent work on safeguards implementation in Iran. We welcome the Director General’s continued reporting to the Board and request that his latest report be made public.
Thank you, Chair.