RIYADH: Saudi Arabia called on Iran to fully comply with the International Atomic Energy Agency’s safeguard agreements under the 2015 nuclear deal.
“Only the IAEA safeguards regime can sufficiently verify Iran’s nuclear commitments,” Prince Abdullah bin Khaled bin Sultan, the Kingdom’s representative to the agency, said.
Iran has repeatedly lacked transparency and procrastinated in cooperating with the IAEA and “the world at large lacks the necessary assurances regarding its nuclear program,” he added.
“Iran’s nuclear blackmail must be stopped.”
The IAEA’s Board of Governors has serious concern over Iran’s continued flouting of the agency’s safeguards, Prince Abdullah said.
He said that Tehran continues to transfer nuclear materials to undeclared locations and repeatedly fails to respond to the IAEA’s questions with credible answers.
“Unless its belligerent intentions are firmly contained, Tehran’s recklessness risks proliferation in the region, leading to global instability. The entire safeguards system is at stake. Only firm positions taken by the Board of Governors can save it,” the envoy said. 
Also on Wednesday, the UN nuclear watchdog slammed as “unacceptable” incidents involving its inspectors in Iran following a news report that Iranian guards had harassed female agency staff.
“The agency immediately and firmly raised this issue with Iran to explain in very clear and unequivocal terms that such security-related incidents involving agency staff are unacceptable and must not happen again,” the IAEA said.