Iran Elected to IAEA General Committee Despite US Opposition

Iran’s mission to the United Nations in Vienna says the Islamic Republic has been elected to the General Committee of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference despite efforts by the United States to block its participation. In a statement on X, the Iranian mission said IAEA member states voted in favor of Iran, describing the decision as a rejection of attempts to use unilateral pressure to influence the agency’s collective decisions.

Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, said the United States had made extensive efforts in recent days to prevent Iran from joining the committee. According to Kamalvandi, Washington’s efforts failed and the matter was ultimately put to a vote, in which Iran secured broad support from member states. He characterized the outcome as a significant setback for the US campaign against Iran within the IAEA.

The Iranian mission said the vote demonstrated that unilateral pressure could not determine collective decisions at the nuclear watchdog. It also accused Washington of violating international law and the UN Charter through military attacks on Iran’s safeguarded nuclear facilities, as well as violating international humanitarian and human rights law. Tehran called for the United States to be held accountable for what it described as continued serious violations of international law.