IAEA chief to visit Tehran as Trump renews military threat

Iran’s nuclear chief announced late Wednesday that Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), is expected to visit Tehran around April 20, likely to address unresolved issues related to monitoring Iran’s nuclear activities.

Mohammad Eslami gave no details about the purpose of Grossi’s trip, but the visit comes as Iran continues to restrict the UN watchdog’s access to its nuclear facilities—a limitation in place since 2021. The timing suggests a possible link to the upcoming nuclear negotiations with the United States, set to begin Saturday.

Eslami also underscored what he described as Iran’s nuclear progress, claiming the country has achieved uranium enrichment without any foreign assistance and is the only nation with a fully indigenous nuclear program.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday reiterated his warning that military action remains on the table if Iran refuses to halt its nuclear activities, adding that Israel would play a leading role in any such operation.

“I’m not asking for much … but they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” Trump told reporters during a press event at the White House, following the signing of several executive orders. He warned that if diplomacy fails, military measures could follow.

“If it requires military, we're going to have military,” he said. “Israel will, obviously, be … the leader of that. No one leads us. We do what we want.”

Trump declined to give a timeline or specific conditions for when military action might occur, saying only, “When you start talks, you know if they’re going along well or not. And I would say the conclusion would be when I think they’re not going along well.”

The comments come just days after Trump made a surprise announcement that direct talks between Washington and Tehran are set to begin Saturday. He warned on Monday that Iran would face “great danger” if negotiations fail to produce a breakthrough on its nuclear program.

The Biden-era nuclear negotiations collapsed in 2022, and since returning to office, Trump has taken a more aggressive stance, demanding that Iran completely abandon its uranium enrichment efforts that have reached an alarming stage, with high levels of uranium enrichment. Tehran has continued to insist on its right to peaceful nuclear development.