The Kremlin on Wednesday said Tehran’s decision to suspend cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is a "direct" result of the recent Israeli and US strikes on nuclear facilities in Iran.
“Of course, such a decision is a direct consequence of the unprovoked attack that took place, a direct consequence of the strikes on nuclear facilities, which were quite unprecedented,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters during a press briefing.
Peskov’s remarks came as Iran’s parliament voted to suspend cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog Wednesday morning, just a day after a US-proposed ceasefire with Israel took effect.
Saying that the severing of cooperation between Tehran and the IAEA “cannot but cause concern,” Peskov argued that the watchdog’s reputation has been seriously damaged in the context of the strikes on Iran.
The spokesman also said Russia is closely monitoring the situation and also maintaining contacts with Iran, adding that there are “certain contacts” between Washington and Tehran, both directly and through other channels.
He went on to say it is unlikely anyone has realistic data on how much Iran's nuclear facilities were damaged in recent Israeli and US strikes, and that they must wait until such data appears.
Israel launched airstrikes on several sites across Iran on June 13, including military and nuclear facilities, alleging that Tehran was on the verge of producing a nuclear bomb, a claim vehemently denied by Iran.
While Iran launched retaliatory missile and drone strikes, the US joined the conflict by bombing three Iranian nuclear sites on Sunday.
After 12 days of aerial combat between the two regional arch-foes, US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire between Israel and Iran to end their conflict.
3rd round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks
On a possible third round of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, Peskov said currently the implementation of humanitarian deals reached in the second round of talks in Istanbul earlier this month is "being completed."
"And after that, it will be time to determine the dates for the continuation (of the negotiations)," he added.
The spokesman went on to deny any exchange of opinions on the draft memorandums swapped between the two countries during the latest Istanbul talks.
The first two rounds of renewed direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine were held in the Turkish metropolis on May 16 and June 2.
In the latest talks, both sides agreed to exchange additional prisoners of war – prioritizing the youngest and most severely wounded – and to return the bodies of 6,000 soldiers from each side.
