IRAN: Little Hope For Nuclear Diplomacy As Tehran Deepens Ties At SCO Summit

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told Reuters that another meeting with Iran to discuss its nuclear programme and pending UN sanctions could happen in Vienna “within a few days”.

• Grossi said that “current talks with Iran on modalities of resuming inspections cannot go on for months on end,” adding that he expects the process can be "concluded soon."
• Grossi warned that the last information on Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile was in June,  before US-Israeli attacks. He “believes there is a general understanding that, by and large, highly enriched uranium is still there”. Grossi adds that “everybody agrees Iran's capacity to produce more uranium-enriching centrifuges is largely there”.
• Germany, France, and the United Kingdom (E3) triggered the JCPOA snapback mechanism on August 28 to reimpose UN Security Council (UNSC) sanctions on Iran. Without an agreement with Tehran to re-admit IAEA inspectors, the sanctions will take effect at the end of September.   
• Such a deal appears unlikely, Iran this week continued efforts to deepen its strategic partnerships with China and Russia to counter efforts to isolate its regime. The Institute for the Study of War notes that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian held separate meetings with Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) members, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, on September 2, on the sidelines of the SCO summit in China.
• The ISW notes that Xi, “reaffirmed China’s support for Iran’s nuclear rights and emphasized China’s commitment to expanding bilateral economic and energy cooperation.”