🎙 Statement by the delegation of the Russian Federation on behalf of 🇨🇳🇮🇷🇷🇺 People’s Republic of China, Islamic Republic of Iran, and Russian Federation on the agenda item 6 (d) of the session of the IAEA Board of Governors "Implementation of the NPT safeguards agreement in Islamic Republic of Iran" 📍Vienna, September 9, 2026 Full text of the Joint Statement This Joint Statement is delivered on behalf of People’s Republic of China, Islamic Republic of Iran, and Russian Federation. We underline that the current agenda item is not relevant. Pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 (2015), all of its provisions terminated on 18 October 2025. We maintain that the E3’s attempts to invoke the so-called “snapback” mechanism are null and void and lack legal effect. Accordingly, the request for the Director General to report on the implementation of those resolutions lacks a legal basis and risks politicizing what should fundamentally remain a technical matter. We recall Iran’s long-standing commitment to nuclear non-proliferation as the State Party to the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and also reaffirm the need for the full and effective realization of the inalienable right of States to develop research, production, and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. The repeated attacks against Iran’s nuclear facilities under IAEA safeguards, together with continuing threats of further aggression, which we strongly condemn, constitute an unprecedented situation in the history of the Agency and strike at the very foundations of the NPT. Relevant resolution of the United Nations Security Council, as well as resolutions of the IAEA General Conference qualify any attack or threat of attack against nuclear facilities as a violation of the principles of the United Nations Charter, international law and the Statute of the Agency. The United States’ attacks against Iran continue, with further attacks in recent days. Accordingly, the prevailing security conditions have effectively rendered the normal implementation of the IAEA safeguards in Iran impossible. This reality has also been acknowledged in the recent reports of the Director General to the Board of Governors. <...> Regarding the draft resolution proposed by the United States, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, we wish to underscore that, irrespective of its procedural and substantive deficiencies, the draft resolution fails even to make explicit reference to the attacks, which constitute the root cause and principal factor underlying the current situation. The finding of Iran’s alleged non-compliance with its safeguards obligations in June 2025 was politically motivated and far-fetched. It also paved the way for attacks against Iran’s nuclear facilities under IAEA safeguards, becoming the root cause of the subsequent difficulties in safeguards implementation in Iran. This is explicitly recognized in the Director General’s reports. The new draft resolution is yet another attempt by its co-authors to exert additional pressure on Iran and undermine cooperation between Iran and the Agency. In the same vein, the alleged “referral” to the UN Security Council lacks a legal basis, intends to aggravate the situation, and is inconsistent with the co-authors’ stated commitment to diplomacy. We therefore encourage all responsible Member States to carefully consider its implications and refrain from supporting the draft resolution. We are of the firm view that a sustainable resolution of the current situation can only be achieved through the immediate and permanent termination of all attacks, the elimination of threats of further aggression, and the recognition that all legitimate questions regarding Iran’s nuclear programme must be addressed exclusively through dialogue and diplomacy, as the only viable path forward.
