Iran committed to Non-Proliferation Treaty, foreign minister says
Germany's Foreign Ministry had urged Tehran to reverse its decision to shelve cooperation with the UN's nuclear watchdog.
DUBAI - Iran remains committed to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and its safeguards agreement, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on July 3, a day after Tehran enacted a law
suspending cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog.
'Our cooperation with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) will be channeled through Iran's Supreme National Security Council for obvious safety and security reasons,' Mr Araghchi wrote in a post on X.
President Masoud Pezeshkian on July 2 enacted the legislation passed by Parliament last week to suspend cooperation with the IAEA, a move the US called 'unacceptable'.
Mr Araghchi's comment on X was in response to a call from Germany's Foreign Ministry urging Tehran to reverse its decision to shelve cooperation with the IAEA.
Mr Araghchi accused Germany of 'explicit support for Israel's unlawful attack on Iran, including safeguarded nuclear sites'.
Iran has accused the IAEA of siding with Western countries and providing a justification for Israel's June 13 to 24
air strikes on Iranian nuclear installations , which began a day after the UN agency's board of governors voted to declare Tehran in violation of its obligations under the NPT.
Western powers have long suspected that Iran has sought to develop the means to build atomic bombs through its declared civilian atomic energy programme. Iran has repeatedly said it is enriching uranium only for peaceful nuclear ends.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Singapore 193ha of land off Changi to be reclaimed for aviation park; area reduced to save seagrass meadow
Business More Singapore residents met CPF Required Retirement Sum when they turned 55 in 2024
Singapore PAP questions Pritam's interview with Malaysian podcast, WP says PAP opposing for the sake of opposing
Singapore 1 in 4 appeals to waive HDB wait-out period for private home owners approved since Sept 2022
World Liverpool's Portuguese forward Diogo Jota dies in car crash in Spain
Singapore Healthcare facility planned for site of Ang Mo Kio Public Library after it moves to AMK Hub
Singapore $500 in Child LifeSG credits, Edusave, Post-Sec Education Account top-ups to be disbursed in July
Business 60 S'pore firms to get AI boost from Tata Consultancy as it launches new innovation centre here
IAEA inspectors are mandated to ensure compliance with the NPT by seeking to verify that nuclear programmes in treaty countries are not diverted for military purposes.
The law that went into effect on July 2 mandates that any future inspection of Iranian nuclear sites by the IAEA needs approval by Tehran's Supreme National Security Council.
'We are aware of these reports. The IAEA is awaiting further official information from Iran,' the Vienna-based global nuclear watchdog said in a statement.
US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told a regular briefing on July 2 that Iran needed to cooperate fully with the IAEA without further delay. REUTERS
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Blistering heat, empty chairs and the C-word mar UN's flagship development event
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during the opening segment of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, in Seville, Spain, June 30, 2025. REUTERS/Claudia Greco SEVILLE - Brutal heat scorched Spain this week, a blistering reminder of the climate change that is battering the world's poorest countries - stretching their finances even as government debt climbs to new heights. But at a once-a-decade UN development finance conference in Seville, two key ingredients were in less abundance: money and power. Just one G7 leader - France's Emmanuel Macron - attended the event, where he and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez addressed rooms filled with dozens of empty chairs. Organisers initially said they expected 70 heads of state; that was whittled to 50 as the conference got underway. Back in Washington, Paris, London and Berlin, rich-country leaders are slashing aid and cutting bilateral lending in a pivot to defence spending and rising debt at home. "The mood is ... I would say realistic, but also a sense of unity and of pragmatism," said Alvaro Lario, president of the International Fund of Agricultural Development, adding the question on everyone's mind this week was how to do more with less. "How can we come together, or think out of the box, or create new type of ways of really stretching it more?" The Financing For Development meeting is a flagship UN conference, charting the trajectory to help tackle changes the world must make to tax policies, aid spending or key areas such as debt, health and education. Its outcomes guide global aid funding and UN policies for the decade to come. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Seller's stamp duty rates for private homes raised; holding period increased from 3 years to 4 Singapore Sengkang murder: Man accused of killing elderly mother escorted back to crime scene Singapore Multiple charges for man accused of damaging PAP campaign materials on GE2025 Polling Day Asia Japan urges evacuation of small island as 1,000 quakes hit region Singapore Jail for man who recruited 2 Japanese women for prostitution at MBS World Trump eyes simple tariff rates over complex talks, says letters will start going out on July 4 World Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending Bill wins congressional approval Asia Indonesian rescuers widen search for missing after ferry sinks EMPTY CHAIRS, MISSING LEADERS Few disagree over the need for action; hundred-year floods and storms are happening with alarming regularity, and rising debt-servicing costs are siphoning money away from health, education and infrastructure spending in the developing world. But even top developing-world leaders Mia Mottley, the Barbados prime minister and prominent global climate champion, and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, currently chairing the Group of 20 major economies, backed out of the event at the last minute. The media room was stacked with bored-looking Spanish press gossiping about a domestic political scandal while disillusioned civil-society leaders stalked the halls, upset with the watered-down agenda and the lack of fiscal or political firepower. "We are facing a backsliding of many agendas that we had advanced a few years ago," said Henrique Frota, director of ABONG, a Brazilian association of NGOs. "Developed countries are reducing their investment in (official development assistance) and European countries are not fulfilling their commitment ... they are giving less and less money right now for every kind of agenda." Event leaders were relieved to produce an outcome document - despite gnawing fears in the past months that Washington would torpedo any deal. In the end, U.S. officials backed out altogether. "The entire community was very afraid of coming here because one country wasn't attending," said UN Assistant Secretary General Marcos Neto. "But the document ended up working out ... I'm leaving happy, with more optimism than I thought I would leave with." Neto highlighted significant steps toward implementing climate and development goals, including the Seville Platform and multiple agreements from public and private sectors to leverage funds for the biggest possible impact. The Seville Commitment included tripling multilateral lending capacity, debt relief, a push to boost tax-to-GDP ratios to at least 15%, and get more rich countries to let the IMF use "special drawing rights" money for countries that need it most. But in Seville, only host nation Spain signed on to commit 50% of its "Special Drawing Rights" for the purpose. THE C-WORD UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed acknowledged that the attendance was not as star-studded as hoped, and that public funds are under pressure. "But there's innovative financing, there's the private sector, there's the triple lending of MDBs ... so the resources are there," she said. "We just have to have the political will to leverage through these mechanisms that have come out of the platform of action and continue moving with them." U.S. President Donald Trump, despite his country's absence, loomed large over the event; his climate change scepticism, hostility toward diversity initiatives and pledge to review U.S. participation in multilateral organizations made some keen to strip the "c-word" - climate change - and rebrand initiatives as focused on resilience, education or health. Still, some say the gloomy backdrop should not deter leaders focused on progress. "Ultimately the important thing is doing it," said Jose Vinals, former group chairman of Standard Chartered and co-chair of both the FFD4 Business Steering Committee and the Global Investors for Sustainable Development Alliance. "The private sector is, for the most part, still willing to walk the talk." REUTERS
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Malaysia dismantles Islamic State network involving workers from Bangladesh
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysian authorities have dismantled a network that used social media to spread ideology and raise funds for the Islamic State militant group among Bangladeshi nationals working in the country, its top police official said on Friday. Muslim-majority Malaysia has detained hundreds of people for suspected militant activities after a 2016 attack in the capital Kuala Lumpur that was linked to Islamic State, though arrests have largely abated in recent years following a regional crackdown. Malaysia relies heavily on foreign labour to fill factory, plantation and construction jobs, with thousands of Bangladeshi nationals moving to the country for work each year. In a televised press conference, Inspector-General of Police Mohd Khalid Ismail said authorities had detained 36 Bangladesh nationals in several operations since April, all of whom had come to Malaysia to work in factories or in sectors like construction and services. The network recruited members by targeting other Bangladeshi workers, and used social media and online messaging platforms to spread radical and extremist ideologies, Mohd Khalid said, citing police intelligence. It also raised funds using international fund transfer services and e-wallets to send to the Islamic State group in Syria and Bangladesh, he added, declining to provide further details on the amount raised. Among those detained, five have been charged with being part of a terrorist organisation, while 15 will be deported. Another 16 remain in police custody pending further investigation, with further arrests expected, Mohd Khalid said. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Seller's stamp duty rates for private homes raised; holding period increased from 3 years to 4 Singapore Sengkang murder: Man accused of killing elderly mother escorted back to crime scene Singapore Multiple charges for man accused of damaging PAP campaign materials on GE2025 Polling Day Asia Japan urges evacuation of small island as 1,000 quakes hit region Singapore Jail for man who recruited 2 Japanese women for prostitution at MBS World Trump eyes simple tariff rates over complex talks, says letters will start going out on July 4 World Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending Bill wins congressional approval Asia Indonesian rescuers widen search for missing after ferry sinks A total of between 100 and 150 people are suspected to be involved in the network, he said. "We will deport those with minimal involvement back to their home country, while those with greater involvement wil be charged under Malaysian laws," he said. REUTERS
AsiaOne
4 hours ago
- AsiaOne
Russia becomes first country to recognise Taliban government of Afghanistan, World News
Russia said on Thursday (July 3) it had accepted the credentials of a new ambassador of Afghanistan, making it the first nation to recognise the Taliban government of the country. In a statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Moscow saw good prospects to develop ties and would continue to support Kabul in security, counter-terrorism and combating drug crime. It also saw significant trade and economic opportunities, especially in energy, transport, agriculture and infrastructure. "We believe that the act of official recognition of the government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan will give impetus to the development of productive bilateral co-operation between our countries in various fields," the ministry said. Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said in a statement: "We value this courageous step taken by Russia, and, God willing, it will serve as an example for others as well." No other country has formally recognised the Taliban government that seized power in August 2021 as US-led forces staged a chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan after 20 years of war. However, China, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Pakistan have all designated ambassadors to Kabul, in a step towards recognition. The Russian move represents a major milestone for the Taliban administration as it seeks to ease its international isolation. It is likely to be closely watched by Washington, which has frozen billions in Afghanistan's central bank assets and enforced sanctions on some senior leaders in the Taliban that contributed to Afghanistan's banking sector being largely cut off from the international financial system. Complex history Russia has been gradually building relations with the Taliban, which President Vladimir Putin said last year was now an ally in fighting terrorism. Since 2022, Afghanistan has imported gas, oil and wheat from Russia. The Taliban was outlawed by Russia as a terrorist movement in 2003, but the ban was lifted in April this year. Russia sees a need to work with Kabul as it faces a major security threat from Islamist militant groups based in a string of countries from Afghanistan to the Middle East. In March 2024, gunmen killed 149 people at a concert hall outside Moscow in an attack claimed by Islamic State. US officials said they had intelligence indicating it was the Afghan branch of the group, Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K), that was responsible. The Taliban says it is working to wipe out the presence of Islamic State in Afghanistan. Western diplomats say the Taliban's path towards wider international recognition is blocked until it changes course on women's rights. The Taliban has closed high schools and universities to girls and women and placed restrictions on their movement without a male guardian. It says it respects women's rights in line with its strict interpretation of Islamic law. Russia has a complex and bloodstained history in Afghanistan. Soviet troops invaded the country in December 1979 to prop up a Communist government, but became bogged down in a long war against mujahideen fighters armed by the United States. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev pulled his army out in 1989, by which time some 15,000 Soviet soldiers had been killed. [[nid:704353]]
