VIENNA (AP) - Setting up a potential showdown with Iran, the head of the U.N. atomic agency said Tuesday that a nuclear agreement being worked on by Tehran and six world powers would give his experts the right to push for access to Iranian military sites.
International Atomic Energy Agency head Yukiya Amano spoke as negotiators opened a new round of talks aimed at reaching a deal by the end of June.
Iran tentatively agreed last month to open its atomic activities to greater scrutiny as part of the deal, which would require it to commit to curbing nuclear activities that could be used to make weapons in exchange for relief from international sanctions.
However, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has since set conditions, declaring military sites off limits "to foreigners ... under the pretext of inspections." Brig. Gen. Hossein Salami of the Revolutionary Guards warns anyone setting foot into an Iranian military facility will be met with "hot lead" - meaning bullets.