Iran halts cooperation with IAEA after European move on UN sanctions

Iran's top security body said action by Britain, France and Germany to reimpose UN sanctions will bring an end to its cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog.

"Despite the foreign ministry's cooperation with the (International Atomic Energy) Agency and the presentation of plans to resolve the issue, the actions of European countries will effectively suspend the path of cooperation with the agency," the Supreme National Security Council said in a televised statement.

The announcement comes after the Security Council voted on Friday to reimpose frozen UN sanctions after the European governments activated the "snapback" mechanism in a decade-old nuclear agreement accusing Iran of non-compliance.

The vote means that the sanctions, suspended in return for curbs on Iran's nuclear activities set out in the 2015 deal, will take renewed effect on September 28 unless Iran can persuade the council to relent in the next week.

Tehran said the action by the European powers undermined months of engagement with the IAEA aimed at resuming monitoring and ensuring compliance with international rules.

Earlier this month, Iran and the IAEA reached an agreement in Cairo that would have allowed inspections of Iranian nuclear sites to resume.

Tehran critical

Iran had suspended them after Israel and the United States attacked its nuclear facilities in June.

Western governments have long accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapons capability, an ambition Tehran denies. 

Tehran has also criticized the IAEA for failing to condemn the Israeli and U.S. strikes.

The European governments have said they will not delay the reimposition of UN sanctions unless Iran resumes full cooperation with the IAEA and reopens nuclear talks with the United States, which have been suspended since June.

'Escalation of tensions'

Russia on Saturday slammed the UN vote to reimpose economic sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme and warned of a risk of an "escalation of tensions". 

"The Russian side has repeatedly pointed out the provocative and illegal nature of the actions of the European countries participating in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)," the Russian foreign ministry said.

"These actions have nothing to do with diplomacy and lead exclusively to a further escalation of tensions surrounding the Iranian nuclear program."

In August, Moscow warned that the reimposition of sanctions against Iran, its key ally, risked "irreparable consequences".

Tehran and Moscow have been bolstering political, military and economic ties over the past decade as Russia drifted away from the West.