HMM: U.N. atomic agency chief warns Iran may have dealt the nuclear deal a ‘fatal blow.’
The development comes a day after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)’s board of governors censured Tehran for failing to provide “credible information” over manufactured nuclear material found at three undeclared sites in the country.
It also follows months of deadlocked over stalled talks aimed at restoring the Islamic Republic’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Tensions remain high across the wider Middle East over the accord’s collapse as U.S. sanctions and rising global food prices choke Iran’s ailing economy, putting further pressure on its government and its people.
“This, of course, poses a serious challenge to our ability to continue working there,” warned Rafael Mariano Grossi, the IAEA’s director-general. He added that if an agreement cannot be reached to restore the cameras in three to four weeks, “this would be a fatal blow” to Iran’s nuclear deal.
Already, Grossi warned that without the cameras, Iran could make centrifuges and divert them to unknown locations.
I, for one, do not underestimate Joe’s ability to f*** things up and make a deal even on this basis.