US pressured Austria to block Mohammad Eslami from IAEA conference, says Iran

Iran has accused the United States of pressuring Austria to prevent its nuclear chief, Mohammad Eslami, from attending the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) annual General Conference in Vienna, escalating tensions between Tehran and Western powers over Iran’s nuclear programme.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei criticised both Washington and Vienna after Eslami was reportedly denied a visa for the five-day gathering at the IAEA headquarters.

Baghaei alleged that the decision was the result of political pressure from the United States. He pointed out that Eslami has regularly attended and addressed the IAEA General Conference since becoming head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization in 2021.

Iran says the visa decision interferes with its rights as an IAEA member state and undermines the principle of allowing member countries to participate fully in the agency’s proceedings.

Addressing delegates during the conference’s opening session, Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA, Reza Najafi, said Eslami’s visa had initially been approved before the decision was reversed.

Najafi described the move as a direct violation of Iran’s rights as a member of the agency. He argued that denying access to Eslami and obstructing Iran’s effective participation was inconsistent with both the legal framework governing attendance at IAEA meetings and its explicit provisions.

He also criticised Austria, the host country, saying Vienna had failed to meet its responsibilities by refusing to issue the visa.

The dispute comes amid renewed international pressure on Iran’s nuclear programme and the reactivation of sanctions under the so-called snapback mechanism.

According to media reports, the United States blocked Eslami from travelling to the IAEA headquarters in Vienna after an effort to secure an exemption from United Nations Security Council travel restrictions was rejected.

Iranian state media reported that the Austrian decision forced Eslami and members of his delegation to cancel their trip to the five-day conference.

The restrictions stem from measures linked to the pre-2015 sanctions framework and were reactivated by European parties last year. Under the restrictions, member states are required to prevent designated Iranian officials associated with the country’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes from entering or transiting their territories.

The latest dispute has added another layer to already strained relations surrounding Iran’s nuclear activities. Tehran has repeatedly accused Western countries of using political pressure to restrict its diplomatic engagement with international institutions.

Iran and Russia have also described the incident as part of what they view as a coordinated effort to make international travel more difficult for Iranian officials.

The controversy comes as Iran continues to demand an investigation into attacks against its nuclear facilities and calls on the IAEA to address the issue.

For Tehran, the dispute is not simply about one official’s attendance. Iranian officials argue that restricting access to an international nuclear forum could set a wider precedent for how member states participate in IAEA proceedings.