Iran says military attacks cannot destroy its nuclear knowledge

Iran's nuclear knowledge and industry cannot be destroyed by military attacks, sabotage or assassinations, the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Behrouz Kamalvandi, said in an address to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna on Tuesday. Kamalvandi stated that securing nuclear facilities in a safe and suitable location should not be construed as an attempt at concealment. He said Iran has consistently faced threats of war and security risks, making it natural to protect vital facilities against enemy military aggression. Although Iran's sensitive nuclear facilities are located underground, he said, they have always remained under IAEA monitoring and inspections.

Kamalvandi said Iran developed its nuclear capabilities after decades of experience in dealing with unreliable international partners and external pressure. He noted that Iran's nuclear science and technology has an 80-year history, while the AEOI is 52 years old. Iran was among the earliest members of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), he said, and has consistently maintained the peaceful nature of its nuclear activities. He recalled that Iran endured pressure and sanctions over its nuclear program for more than 25 years while continuing to pursue negotiations and honor its agreements, including the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

According to Kamalvandi, the United States was the only JCPOA party that withdrew from the agreement. Iran nevertheless continued implementing its commitments unilaterally for about 1.5 years after the US withdrawal. He said 15 consecutive reports by the IAEA director general at the time had confirmed Iran's implementation of its JCPOA commitments. He added that Iran's approach was nevertheless followed by unilateral sanctions, including measures described by their proponents as "crippling." Kamalvandi said negotiations resumed in 2022 after a change of administration in the United States, and a return to the JCPOA was within reach before Washington refused to conclude an agreement. Talks later resumed under the current US administration, but Israel then launched a military aggression on Iran in June 2025 as the parties were preparing to review technical details at the IAEA.

Turning to the IAEA, Kamalvandi questioned whether the agency's repeated inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities had ever produced a finding of nuclear material diversion by Iran. He criticized the IAEA director general for politicized conduct and double standards, noting that recent statements and reports had provided pretexts for Iran's adversaries to attack the country. Kamalvandi called on the agency to condemn military attacks against Iran's nuclear facilities and engage with Tehran. He also urged the IAEA to fulfill its responsibilities on the basis of its statutory mandate and treat Iran in the same manner as other member states. He said Iran has a peaceful and transparent nuclear program and that its sensitive facilities have been located in secure, including underground, sites because of the country's continuing exposure to military and security threats. Such measures, he said, should not be viewed as concealment. He said Iran's pursuit of indigenous nuclear capabilities stemmed from its experience with European countries that had failed to fully honor nuclear-related contractual commitments both before and after the Islamic Revolution.

According to Mehr News, the comments come following two rounds of US-Israeli aggression against Iran that have in part targeted Iran's safeguarded nuclear facilities amid the silence and inaction of the IAEA.