Referring to Iran starting enriched uranium metal production, Saudi Arabia’s IAEA envoy asserted that “this approach negatively affects any negotiations related to the nuclear agreement as the knowledge gained from research and development work cannot be reversed”. He went on to contend that “the escalatory steps announced by Iran do not match with its statements about the peacefulness of its nuclear program and confirm its intentions and pursuit of the capabilities to produce a nuclear weapon”. Iran’s envoy in Vienna riposted that Saudi Arabia was not providing the IAEA “with even minimum necessary verification authorities”.