ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iran’s foreign ministry on Monday summoned Austria’s charge d’affaires after the country denied visas to an Iranian delegation led by nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami, accusing Vienna of having made the decision “under American pressure.”

“The Austrian government's refusal to issue visas to the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran is a completely unjustified decision,” ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said at a press conference, according to state media, accusing Austria of refusing the visas “under American pressure.”

Eslami was due to attend the annual general conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN’s nuclear watchdog, in Vienna, which runs through Friday. He attended last year’s conference and delivered a speech on behalf of Iran, an IAEA member state.

“We expressed our protest explicitly to the Austrian government and their charge d'affaires was summoned to the foreign ministry,” the ministry said.

As the host country for the UN in Vienna, Austria can request exemptions from travel bans to enable sanctioned officials to attend international conferences at the UN.

Following the 12-day Israeli war with Iran in June 2025, Tehran stopped allowing IAEA inspectors access to its nuclear sites that were affected by strikes during the war.

The US-Israeli war on Iran began in late February, with Washington maintaining that the offensive was intended to eliminate Iran’s nuclear capabilities and impose limits on its missile program. The US and Iran have resumed fighting on and off after a fragile ceasefire collapsed in July.

Iran says it is not pursuing nuclear weapons and that its nuclear program is entirely peaceful.