Iranian parliament committee approves general plan to suspend cooperation with IAEA
The national security committee of Iran's parliament approved the general outline of a bill meant to fully suspend Tehran's cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Monday, citing committee spokesman Ebrahim Rezaei.
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Rezaei said that according to the bill, installing surveillance cameras, allowing inspections, and submitting reports to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would be suspended as long as the security of nuclear facilities is not guaranteed. Parliament still has to approve the bill in a plenary.
Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran's parliament, accused the IAEA of lacking objectivity and professionalism. The IAEA in June adopted a resolution condemning Tehran's failure to cooperate with the agency with regard to its nuclear programme.
As Israel and Iran exchanged fresh strikes on Monday, Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte stressed that Tehran should not be allowed to have a nuclear bomb.
He said his 'greatest fear' was that Tehran had a nuclear weapon which would give it a 'stranglehold' on Israel and the rest of the world.
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'When it comes to Nato's stance on Iran's nuclear programme, allies have long agreed that Iran must not develop a nuclear weapon,' said Rutte ahead of a Nato summit in The Hague.
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