Washington 0
5 March 2019

In remarks to the IAEA Board of Governors, Ambassador Jackie Wolcott posited that "Iran must be willing to change its behaviour, and to take lasting steps that demonstrate that its nuclear program will forever remain exclusively peaceful. Absent assurances of effective verification, there is no chance for diplomacy to succeed, so it is up to all of us.... to preserve the integrity and effectiveness of IAEA monitoring". "It is for this reason", she continued, "as we look toward a new and comprehensive agreement, that Iran must honestly address why it retained an immense archive of files from its past nuclear weapons activities... the facts of Iran's past nuclear weapons activities continue to have bearing on current questions about the possibility of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran. These issues must be addressed in a clear and straightforward manner, without further delay". The ambassador went on to unveil "a new, $1 million U.S. pledge toward the IAEA's critical verification and monitoring activities in Iran", and concluded by underscoring that "we are out of the deal, not in violation of it". 

Subscribe to Crisis Group’s Email Updates

Receive the best source of conflict analysis right in your inbox.