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Iran lobbied several countries with seats on the ruling body of the United Nations nuclear watchdog to vote down a widely expected censure resolution on Thursday.
The Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday called the foreign ministers of Brazil, South Africa, Bangladesh, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Pakistan - all on the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) - to warn against the adoption of the resolution put forward by Western powers.
"The push by France, Britain and Germany for a resolution against Iran would only weaken and disrupt the interactional processes between Iran and the Agency," Araghchi said, according to media reports in Iran.
He called on the member states voting on the resolution to block it.
Previous voting patterns suggest that proposals backed by the main Western countries easily pass. A successful resolution could pave the way for the three European powers to trigger a "snapback mechanism" to restore UN sanctions imposed on Iran before the 2015 nuclear deal.
The planned censure is due to be approved despite Tehran offering to cap its highly-enriched uranium stock.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi says that Iran has agreed to freeze its uranium stockpile enriched to 60% following his request during recent talks in Tehran.
"I made a request for Iran to stop increasing the stockpile of 60%, and this was accepted," Grossi said in his report to the agency's Board of Governors in Vienna on Wednesday. The freeze would not resolve broader issues about Iran’s nuclear activities, he added.
Iran began enriching uranium up to 60% after a 2015 international deal unraveled when Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the agreement.
“The US concerns have been all along about Iran engaging in enriching uranium to 60%. We're very concerned about it,” US alternative ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood told Iran International on Wednesday. “I know the IAEA Board is going to be looking at this issue. We're reviewing the report of IAEA Director-General."
The IAEA’s latest confidential report confirms that Iran has made preparations to cap its stockpile at around 185 kg, according to Reuters. Iran also agreed to consider accepting the appointment of four additional experienced IAEA inspectors after having banned around one third last year.
