3 days ago
Provocative and baseless: Iran slams Austria's weapons report
Shafaq News/ On Friday, Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned Austria's chargé d'affaires in Tehran, Michaela Bacher, following claims in Vienna's annual intelligence report alleging Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapons program.
Alireza Molla Khedmeh, Director General for Western Europe at the ministry, conveyed Iran's 'categorical rejection' of the report during a meeting in Tehran, describing the allegations as 'baseless' and 'inconsistent with repeated International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) findings' affirming the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program.
'The Austrian intelligence agency's action is irresponsible, provocative, and lacks legal or technical grounding,' Molla Khedmeh said, urging Vienna to issue a formal clarification to prevent damage to bilateral relations.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei also criticized the report, calling it 'false, misleading, and politically motivated," warning that the claims 'undermine the IAEA's credibility' and serve 'hostile media narratives.'
The Austrian intelligence service claimed in its report, published May 26, that Iran maintains an active program to develop nuclear weapons potentially designed for delivery via long-range missiles, while Tehran has repeatedly denied such ambitions, maintaining that its nuclear activities are strictly civilian and in compliance with the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
