IAEA Board of Governors
Agenda item 6f: NPT Safeguards Agreement with the Islamic Republic of Iran
11 June 2025
Statement by H.E Ambassador Ian Biggs, Governor and Resident Representative of Australia to the IAEA
Chair,
Australia thanks the Director General for his report under this agenda item. It provides a clear, detailed and objective account of Iran’s outstanding safeguards issues, in response to the Board’s request in November 2024 for a ‘comprehensive and updated assessment’ of relevant information.
The report’s findings are grave. Iran has not provided technically credible answers regarding nuclear-related activities at the four undeclared locations discussed in the report. The Agency is not in a position to confirm what happened to nuclear material at three of those locations – Lavisan-Shian, Varamin and Turquzabad - nor to the nuclear material which is unaccounted for from past uranium metal conversion experiments at JHL. The fact that this nuclear material may still be outside of safeguards is highly concerning.
As the report conclusively demonstrates, Iran’s cooperation with the Agency has fallen far short of what is legally required. Over a lengthy period, Iran has failed to credibly respond to the Agency’s questions regarding undeclared nuclear material or facilities. It conducted sanitisation activities at all four of the undeclared locations. Such sanitisation is an example of activities which undermine the effective implementation of safeguards. Iran is the only State with a CSA that is not meeting its legal obligations under Modified Code 3.1. And its frequent, repeated withdrawal of the designation of experienced inspectors, in a targeted manner and with little or no notice, is inconsistent with a good faith implementation of safeguards.
Chair,
The Board has adopted repeated resolutions, most recently in June and November of last year, requiring Iran to fulfil its legal obligations and clarify all outstanding safeguards issues. Iran has had abundant time and opportunity to heed these requests. Unfortunately, as the Director General’s report makes clear, Iran is still unwilling to do so.
Confronted by an unequivocal case of prolonged, serious non-compliance by a State with its safeguards obligations, the Board must act. Failure to do so would undermine the Board’s crucial role in upholding the integrity of the global nuclear non-proliferation regime. For this reason, Australia supports the draft resolution which has been tabled by France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States, including its finding that Iran is in non-compliance in the context of Article XII.C of the Agency’s Statute.
We sincerely hope that following adoption of this resolution, Iran will finally respond in good faith to the Director General’s urgent call to cooperate fully and effectively with the Agency to address its outstanding safeguards issues. If Iran fails yet again to do so, further action by this Board may be required.
As always, Australia expresses its appreciation to the Director General and the Secretariat for their tireless efforts to engage with Iran on safeguards implementation. We welcome the Director General’s continued reporting and request that his latest report be made public.
Thank you, Chair.