On May 13, when International Atomic Energy Agency head Yukiya Amano said that the agency expects Iran would permit inspections of military sites as part of a comprehensive nuclear deal, conservative Iranian media outlets reacted harshly, vowing that Iran would not allow such a thing. On May 20, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Iran would not only not allow inspections of military sites but most importantly, would not allow the IAEA to “interrogate” Iran’s nuclear scientists, saying the request came from a “brazen and insolent enemy.”
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (P5+1) had reportedly presented Iran a list of names of nuclear scientists to be questioned by the IAEA. On May 26, Iranian negotiator Seyyed Abbas Araghchi said that while Iran would accept “managed inspections” as part of the Additional Protocols, it had rejected the P5+1 request to interview Iran’s nuclear scientists.