Iran Says It Has Not Left Nuclear Treaty

Iran has not suspended its obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the Foreign Ministry stated on Monday. This clarification comes as tensions with the United States remain high and broad international inspections of Iranian nuclear sites stay limited.

The delay in full inspections follows US and Israeli attacks on Iran's primary nuclear facilities and the assassinations of several senior leaders. These events have intensified debates within Iranian authorities about potentially abandoning the treaty to build a nuclear weapon.

Esmaeil Baghaei, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, reaffirmed the country's commitment to the NPT during a press conference in Tehran. He acknowledged that cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, is currently restricted. Baghaei said that conditions imposed by other parties, specifically the attacks by the US and Israel, have created complications in implementing safeguards.

The Bushehr nuclear power plant, built with Russian cooperation, remains the only facility currently accessible to the IAEA. It was not directly bombed during the war, though US warplanes attacked its perimeter several times. Rafael Grossi, the IAEA director, told the UN Security Council in late October that the agency could not verify Iran's nuclear material because Tehran had not provided the necessary information and access.

Ali Vaez, deputy director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at the International Crisis Group, described Iran's stance as keeping one foot inside the NPT while the other hovers near the exit. He told Al Jazeera that allowing inspections at Bushehr is a low-cost gesture intended to keep diplomacy alive. This strategy preserves Iran's leverage over the critical underground nuclear sites at Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan.

Seyed Hossein Mousavian, a visiting researcher at Princeton University, explained that Iran distinguishes between honoring NPT commitments and permitting inspections of damaged facilities. He noted that the IAEA lacks an established protocol for inspecting nuclear sites that have suffered military attacks. Mousavian added that Iranian officials fear information from these sites could be shared with the US and Israel for use in future strikes.

Calls to leave the NPT are gaining support among senior officials. Mohsen Rezaei, Iran's security chief, has publicly discussed abandoning the treaty on multiple occasions. Hossein Mohebbi, spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, stated earlier this week that the organization would create necessary preparations if the country decided to change its nuclear doctrine.

Regional mediators, including Qatar and Pakistan, continue to relay messages between Iran and the US to prevent another all-out war. Tehran has maintained that it will not allow its highly enriched uranium to leave the country but remains open to downblending it under international supervision. A comprehensive deal would also require a resolution to hostilities in the Strait of Hormuz, which analysts say is unlikely in the near future.

Vaez suggested that Tehran might be willing to make small concessions in exchange for tangible American benefits. He noted that a preliminary deal could unlock limited, phased inspections based on the 2025 Cairo agreement between Iran and the IAEA. That agreement envisaged restored access to all Iranian facilities with case-by-case permission, but it was never enforced after renewed attacks began on February 28.