Comments by Yukiya Amano, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), regarding inspection of military sites in Iran as part of a nuclear deal have resulted in harsh reactions from Iran’s hard-liners. During an interview with The Associated Press, Amano said, “In many other countries from time to time we request access to military sites when we have the reason to, so why not Iran? If we have a reason to request access, we will do so, and in principle Iran has to accept it.”

According to Amano, as part of the April 2 Lausanne framework deal between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany, inspectors can request access to military sites as part of the Additional Protocols. Since the signing of the Lausanne deal, many of Iran’s top generals have stressed that they would not allow inspections of military sites.

Hard-line Iranian media outlets used Amano’s comments to attack the Iranian negotiators for the Lausanne deal. Kayhan, which has been one of the most vocal critics of a nuclear compromise, ran as its top story, “Amano’s death blow to the confidence of the wishful thinkers.” The article stated that Amano’s comments to The Associated Press about the inspection of military sites “contradicted the statements by Iranian officials.”

Kayhan reported that the inspection of nuclear sites was voluntarily allowed when current President Hassan Rouhani was lead negotiator during the 2003 Saadabad nuclear agreement. But according to Kayhan, once the European countries reneged on their end of the agreement, Iran’s parliament suspended the Additional Protocols allowing inspections of military sites.