Iran’s permanent representative to international organizations in Vienna, Kazem Gharibabadi, gave a speech to the 21st edition of Edoardo Amaldi Conference, held in Italy’s Rome.
In his address to the conference, Gharibabadi underlined that Iran’s measure to scale back commitments to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) has by no means obstructed the process of cooperation with the IAEA in carrying out the Additional Protocol.
He said the UN nuclear agency has confirmed in successive reports that the Islamic Republic was working in cooperation with the IAEA.
The envoy explained that Tehran decided to reduce commitments to the JCPOA in accordance with the Articles 26 and 36 of the nuclear accord as part of efforts to protect its rights and create a balance in the implementation of the JCPOA.
Elsewhere in his speech, Gharibabadi called for efforts to create a nuclear-free Middle East, saying the Zionist regime’s nukes and unbridled nuclear program pose the greatest threat to the region and constitute a violation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
Since 1988, the Edoardo Amaldi conference has held biennial meetings on the subject of nuclear non-proliferation as well as scientific and security cooperation.
The conference is named after Edoardo Amaldi, the first president of the Union of Scientists for Disarmament, founded in 1982.
The theme of this year’s conference is “International Cooperation for Enhancing Nuclear Safety, Security, Safeguards and Non-Proliferation”.