Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — Iran, despite its agreement with the West, continues to
deny international inspectors access to a key nuclear military site.

Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization has rejected appeals by NATO states
for the inspection of the Parchin military site southeast of Teheran.

The Iranian government body said the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would not be granted access to Parchin, believed to have hosted nuclear warhead experiments.

“Inspection of Parchin is not within the framework of these seven steps,” Iranian Atomic Energy Organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said.

In a briefing on Feb. 9, Kamalvandi said Parchin was not part of the P5+1 nuclear agreement with Iran, signed in November 2013. He said Iran and IAEA signed a separate accord that would enable inspections of other facilities.

IAEA has been denied access to Parchin since 2005. The United Nations agency has voiced concerns that Iran conducted high-explosive experiments required in the development of a nuclear warhead.

“We expect that we will witness a positive report by the International
Atomic Energy Agency’s director-general to the board of governors
considering the data provided by the Islamic republic of Iran and the
climate of cooperation,” Kamalvandi said.

The Teheran regime has also rejected requests that Iran join the
so-called Additional Protocol of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The
protocol allows IAEA to conduct spot inspections of facilities believed to
be conducting secret nuclear activities. The United States asserted that
Iran has expressed commitment to the protocol.

“This is baseless,” the Iranian embassy in Azerbaijan said on Feb. 9.
“Any acceptance of the protocol must be approved by parliament.”

  Behrouz Kamalvandi, IAEA, Iran refuses to allow inspection of Parchin nuclear site, P5+1 agreement