Iran statement at IAEA GC70: agenda item 23

Statement by the Delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran before the 70th IAEA General Conference under Agneda Item 23: “Prohibition of All Forms of Attacks and Threats of Attack Against Nuclear Sites and Facilities Under IAEA Safeguards and Devoted to Peaceful Purposes” (Vienna 17 September 2026)

In the Name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful

Mr. President,

This item was first proposed by the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1988. Its consideration has become even more urgent today in light of the unprecedented attacks against peaceful nuclear facilities over the past 15 months. I will address this topic by highlighting the growing importance of protecting nuclear facilities, the legal framework governing this issue, and the way forward.

First: The Growing Importance of Protecting Nuclear Facilities

In recent years, the world has witnessed two conflicting trends concerning the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

At the same time, nuclear energy has become one of the most reliable, clean, and sustainable sources of energy, with global demand steadily growing, as reflected in the IAEA’s 2025 Annual Report.

On the other hand, armed attacks on peaceful nuclear facilities have reached an unprecedented level in frequency and severity, risking their normalization. What is unacceptable today must not become routine tomorrow.

This trend is alarming. Armed attacks on nuclear facilities can have consequences extending far beyond the immediate conflict zone, posing serious risks to human life, public health, and the environment.

An attack targeting the core of a nuclear power plant could result in a meltdown and significant radiation release, with consequences comparable to a nuclear weapon detonation. Such attacks disrupt electricity supply, damage critical infrastructure, and interrupt the production of essential medical isotopes.

The economic and social impacts are equally severe. Repair and reconstruction costs, long-term decontamination, and healthcare expenditures can amount to hundreds of billions of dollars -- as demonstrated by past nuclear accidents. They also would reduce public confidence in nuclear energy.

At the international level, normalizing such attacks undermines the global legal order and international peace and security.

Regarding the Agency's core objective, these attacks severely disrupt States' inalienable right to peaceful nuclear energy. They weaken the authority of the IAEA, call into question the worth of its safeguards system if safeguarded facilities can be bombed with impunity, erode confidence in the Agency, and undermine the integrity of the NPT and the IAEA Statute.

These actions run contrary to the letter and spirit of the UN Charter, the NPT, and the IAEA Statute. They strengthen neither non-proliferation nor international security.

For these reasons, the protection of nuclear facilities against armed attacks must be a matter of paramount international concern and urgency.

Second: The Applicable Legal Framework

The starting point is the prohibition of the threat or use of force, enshrined in Article 2(4) of the UN Charter. According to this fundamental principle, “the first use” – and I repeat - “the first use” of armed force by a State is prohibited.

This prohibition, a peremptory norm of general international law, is absolute; no pretext or unilateral justification may be invoked under any circumstances whatsoever to violate it. Any such violation constitutes an act of aggression.

To put this in context, in two separate joint armed attacks in 2025 and 2026, the armed forces of the US-Israeli regime invaded our country, martyring our Supreme Leader, many officials, and thousands of civilians including 168 innocent children, aged 7 to 12, in a triple-tap strike on a girls’ primary school in Minab.

They cited so-called proliferation concerns to justify their actions—a claim as baseless as the WMD arguments made by the US and the UK for invading Iraq.

Accordingly, the US-Israeli regime’s armed attacks constitute an act of aggression, and thus the crime of aggression -- the supreme international crime. Simultaneously, they repeatedly committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in the most serious manner.

One such crime was the assassination of 14 of our university scientists, along with members of their families. Only in one case, a scientist was assassinated with 17 members of his extended family, including three boys of 7, 13 and 17 years old, and two girls of 8 and 14 years old.

Under international law, all such crimes entail the international responsibility of the aggressors, and oblige them to cease their internationally wrongful acts, to offer appropriate assurances and guarantees of non-repetition, and make full reparation for the damage and injury they caused. Additionally, such crimes give rise to the individual criminal responsibility of persons who ordered and committed them.

Based on these norms, Security Council, in its unanimously adopted resolution 487 condemned the Israeli regime’s attack on Iraqi nuclear installations in 1981 as a clear violation of the UN Charter and a serious threat to the IAEA safeguards system, and urged the Israeli regime to refrain in the future from any such acts or threats.

When force is used in self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter in response to an unlawful armed attack, it is governed by international humanitarian law. Under Article 56 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions, nuclear power stations enjoy special protection.

Third: The Way Forward

On the legal front, the foremost requirement is a firm commitment by all States to implement their obligations under international law in good faith, with full observance of the absolute prohibition of the use of force at its core.

This must be complemented by promoting the adherence to other norms on the inviolability of peaceful nuclear sites.

The international community must adopt a zero-tolerance policy toward any attack or threat against peaceful nuclear facilities. Any genuine concern regarding nuclear activities must be resolved exclusively through peaceful means and diplomacy as well as established legal mechanisms.

No political or military justification should be accepted for attacking nuclear installations; no attack on nuclear facilities must be tolerated; and any attack must trigger a decisive international response holding perpetrators to account.

Institutionally, relevant bodies must fulfil their responsibilities. The Security Council and the IAEA must take any attack on nuclear facilities seriously, act promptly, decisively and consistently.

The dead silence of the UNSC and the IAEA regarding attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities sets a dangerous precedent that undermines non-proliferation norms and architecture and the global legal order.

Silence in the face of such attacks is not neutrality; it risks emboldening future aggressions and creating the dangerous perception that such violations can be tolerated with impunity.

Such a precedent would inevitably weaken transparency, erode trust, and undermine the very foundations of the IAEA safeguards system. Silence today risks incentivizing opacity in the future.

Indeed, enhancing the protection of peaceful nuclear facilities is an urgent collective responsibility that is essential for international peace, the integrity of the IAEA and its safeguards system, and the full realization of the inherent right to peaceful uses of nuclear energy. This responsibility must be fulfilled responsibly.

For its part, the Islamic Republic of Iran that has always vigorously pursued its national interests and inherent rights based on its international obligations, will never hesitate to use all necessary means to protect its people, to defend its national security, and to pursue its national interests.

I thank you, Mr. President.