U.S. envoy slams Russia for bid to shield Iran from IAEA inspections

"U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Thursday slammed a bid by Russia to shield Iran from inspections by the United Nations nuclear watchdog relating to a specific section of a landmark 2015 deal restricting Tehran's nuclear activities.

Iran agreed to the nuclear deal with six major powers in exchange for the lifting of sanctions. Compliance with the nuclear restrictions is being verified by the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency.

Haley has infuriated Iran by saying the IAEA should widen inspections to include military sites, but diplomats say Russia has been trying to restrict the agency's role by arguing it has no authority to police a broadly worded section of the deal.

'If the Iran nuclear deal is to have any meaning, the parties must have a common understanding of its terms,' Haley said in a statement. 'It appears that some countries are attempting to shield Iran from even more inspections. Without inspections, the Iran deal is an empty promise.'..."