TL;DR
The 70th IAEA General Conference opened in Vienna, Austria, on September 14, 2026, calling on the international community to practice multilateralism and prevent nuclear proliferation. On the same day, Iran condemned that pressure from the United States had kept its nuclear chief from attending.
Event overview
The 70th General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) opened in Vienna, Austria, on September 14, 2026. The conference called on the international community to practice multilateralism and jointly prevent nuclear proliferation. On the same day, IRIB, Iran's state broadcaster, reported that Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, flew to Austria on September 12 to attend the conference but returned to Tehran the same day due to obstruction by the United States and others.
Key facts
- Event: the 70th IAEA General Conference.
- Opening: September 14, 2026, in Vienna, Austria.
- Appeal: multilateralism and joint efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation.
- Iran's absence: Atomic Energy Organization of Iran head Eslami returned to Tehran on September 12 due to US obstruction; Iran's representative to the IAEA condemned the move at the conference on September 14 as a violation of its rights as a member state (per IRIB report on September 14).
Official sources
- Xinhua News Agency (September 15, 2026): IAEA conference urges multilateralism, non-proliferation
- Xinhua News Agency (September 14, 2026): Iran: absent from IAEA conference due to US pressure