IAEA chief visits Iran

The director general of the UN's nuclear watchdog, Yukiya Amano, was expected to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday, as well as hold talks with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, and the country's atomic energy agency chief, Ali Akbar Salehi.

In a short statement, the IAEA said the visit was "part of the efforts to advance dialogue and cooperation between the agency and Iran," although it gave no details about what Amano would discuss with Iranian leaders and officials.

Iran is expected to hold new talks with the five members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany, before the UN General Assembly starts in September. Those talks aim to secure an accord on curbing Iran's nuclear activities, in return for relief from crippling Western sanctions.

Discussions between Iran and the group of six countries - which includes the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia, and Germany - have been ongoing since 2003, and have so far failed to result in an agreement.

The six countries fear Iran's uranium enrichment program could be used to make a nuclear weapon, but Tehran maintains its uranium is only used for medical research and power generation.

New talks

An interim deal was struck by world leaders and Iran in November last year, with a view to find a permanent solution by July.

Under that deal, the Islamic republic agreed to scale back its nuclear activities for six months and allow inspectors access to its nuclear sites, including the Gachin uranium mine and the Arak heavy water reactor, in return for some sanctions relief.

But after failing to hammer out a lasting agreement in July, Iran and the six world powers extended their deadline to November 24.

"Unless Iran addresses the IAEA's concerns ... the chance is reduced of successfully negotiating a long term nuclear agreement between the (six powers) and Iran," the Institute for Science and International Security think-tank said this month.

Amano's visit in Iran also comes just ahead of an August 25 deadline, by which time Iran is expected to provide the IAEA with information to clarify what the UN agency has called "large-scale high explosives experimentation."

nm/ipj (AFP, Reuters, AP, dpa)