The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, has travelled to Iran for talks for the first time in more than a year.

According to Iranian media reports, Mr Grossi arrived in the capital, Tehran, on Monday.

The visit came at a turbulent time, given the recent direct military clashes between Iran and Israel.

As in previous years, the IAEA chief was expected to negotiate with top Iranian politicians on the country’s nuclear programme.

According to Iranian media reports, Mr Grossi was also due to participate in the country’s first international nuclear conference on Tuesday in addition to the bilateral negotiations.

He has long been trying to get answers from Iran about past secret nuclear activities.

According to him, there are still important information gaps.

A few days ago, Iran’s nuclear chief, Mohammed Eslami, expressed confidence that the IAEA leader’s trip could end the differences.

Iran had committed to severely restricting its nuclear programme in a 2015 agreement in exchange for relief from sanctions.

The pact, which was intended to prevent Iran from building nuclear bombs, was terminated by then-U.S. President Donald Trump in 2018.

In response, Tehran greatly expanded uranium enrichment and restricted IAEA inspections. 

(dpa/NAN)