Iran’s FM Abbas Araghchi says Cairo Agreement no more valid after ‘snapback sanctions’

Iran’s Foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that the Cairo Agreement between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) signed in September is no longer valid after the activation of the snapback mechanism. Speaking at a press conference, he said Iran’s cooperation with the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog is no longer relevant after international sanctions were reimposed on the country. “The Cairo agreement is no longer relevant for our cooperation with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency),” Araghchi said as he criticised Western nations for making “unreasonable demands” and relying on threats rather than fair diplomacy.

He said pressure tactics, including talk of military action and the use of sanctions, had failed to yield results and only made negotiations more difficult.

‘Iran consistently sought fair and balanced diplomatic solutions’

Araghchi said Iran consistently sought fair and balanced diplomatic solutions, but Western countries rejected these efforts and made excessive and unreasonable demands.

“Experience has shown that there is no solution to Iran’s nuclear issue other than a diplomatic and negotiated one,” he said.

The top Iranian diplomat said that the conditions that have been reported in the media as Iran's alleged demands have never been officially communicated to Tehran.

He added that in discussions Iran has been focused solely on the nuclear issue, conducted either directly or indirectly with the American side and its proposals were completely transparent, but they were not taken seriously.

Araghchi said his ministry will continue its diplomatic efforts, as diplomacy can never be disregarded. “However, the situation following the military attack and the activation of the snapback mechanism has changed, and the negotiations now will certainly be different from before.”

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‘More than 120 countries condemned Israeli military action’

Araghchi said more than 120 countries and nearly all international organisations condemned the Israeli military action in June and expressed their support and solidarity with the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The sanctions restored under snapback mechanism place sweeping restrictions on Iran’s economy. They target companies, individuals, and organizations linked to nuclear or missile development, prohibiting the supply of equipment, expertise, or financial support.

The Cairo Agreement was reached in September between IAEA chief Rafael Grossi and Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi to allow the full resumption of inspections of Iran’s nuclear facilities that were halted after military strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites in June. After the US and Israeli attacks, Iran’s parliament passed a law halting cooperation with the IAEA and requiring that any future inspections be cleared by the Supreme National Security Council.

In the twelve-day war that broke out on June 13, Israel launched large-scale strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, military bases, and government infrastructure and killed several senior Iranian military officials and nuclear scientists, and damaged uranium enrichment sites.