The IAEA’s Right to Visit Sites Accused of Developing Nuclear Weapons Systems: The Parchin Facility in Iran

Recent activities at the Iranian facility at Parchin have increased suspicion that Iran has not fully disclosed its nuclear program goals, sparking a debate on how the international community should respond to this potential threat to peace and security. The article investigates which legal provisions could potentially enable the IAEA to access the Parchin facility under international law. In this sense, legal documents relating to the IAEA, resolutions adopted by the Security Council and the Board of Governors and the Geneva Agreement of November 2013 are investigated. The authors find that, although the IAEA may experience difficulties in demanding access to the Parchin facility through its Safeguards Agreement with Iran, it could rely on the resolutions adopted by the Security Council and the Board of Governors, providing the IAEA with a clear mandate to demand access to basically all Iranian facilities involved with either nuclear or weapons development.