Special to WorldTribune.com

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) decision on Dec. 15 to end its investigation into the possible military dimensions of Iran’s nuclear program was “political,” an Israeli official said.

Yuval Steinitz, national infrastructure, energy and water minister, said the IAEA made its decision after being pressured from world powers that brokered the nuclear agreement with Iran, or Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“The decision made today was political and not practical,” Steinitz said on Dec. 15, adding that “for this reason it sends a wrong message to the Iranians that the international community is willing to look the other way.”

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, in a statement welcoming the UN nuclear watchdog’s decision, said “closing the PMD [possible military dimensions] agenda item will in no way preclude the IAEA from investigating if there is reason to believe Iran is pursuing any covert nuclear activities in the future, as it had in the past.

“In fact, the JCPOA – by providing for implementation of the additional protocol as well as other enhanced transparency – puts the IAEA in a far better position to pursue any future concerns that may arise.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the IAEA’s report on Iran’s past nuclear activities “clearly indicates once again that Iran has conducted a coordinated effort to develop a nuclear device, including activities taking place after 2003. For over a decade, Iran has been non-cooperative and deceptive.”

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee said the IAEA’s decision to end its investigation was a “deplorable” development.

“The IAEA is closing this file even after discovering further suspicious evidence and experiencing additional Iranian obstinacy,” the group said in a statement. “The IAEA could have recommended delaying ‘implementation day’ until Iran demonstrated substantial compliance with its obligation to explain its past illicit nuclear activities. This decision to whitewash the past represents an inauspicious beginning to the implementation process of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the IAEA resolution “goes far beyond closing the issue of so-called PMD and cancels the 12 previous resolutions of the Council of Governors of the IAEA, which seriously restricted our country’s nuclear program.”

  Israel calls IAEA vote ‘political’ as Iran nuclear weapons investigation ends, John Kerry, Mohammad Javad Zarif, WorldTribune.com, Yuval Steinitz