IAEA Chief Says Iran Nuclear Inspections Should Resume ‘Soon’ Under US-Iran Deal

The nuclear watchdog said initial discussions with Tehran on inspections have barely started, and called on Iran to move quickly to allow ’strong' verification.

International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media on the sidelines of a meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna, Austria, on June 5, 2026. Elisabeth Mandl/Reuters

The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog said Friday that inspectors should soon regain access to Iran under the U.S.–Iran memorandum of understanding, even as Tehran says that bomb-damaged nuclear sites will remain off-limits until a final deal is reached and sanctions are lifted.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi said on June 26 that the preliminary agreement reached between Washington and Tehran requires that inspectors verify Iran’s nuclear activities, including the fate of its enriched uranium stockpile.