U.N. nuclear agency chief Yukiya Amano is expected to visit Tehran on November 11, Iranian state television said on Tuesday, a possible sign of progress in a long-stalled investigation into suspected nuclear arms research by Tehran.
After years of worsening confrontation with the West, Iran has switched to a conciliatory mode - entailing diplomacy in search of a peaceful solution to its disputed nuclear activity - since the June election of moderate President Hassan Rouhani.
The International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran have held a series of fruitless meetings since early 2012 to agree ground rules for the IAEA's inquiry, but hopes for a breakthrough have been lifted by Rouhani's rise.
The Islamic Republic denies seeking nuclear weapons, saying it wants only civilian atomic energy.
Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's atomic energy organization, said he hoped the two sides would reach an agreement during Amano's visit, state television said on its web site, without giving details.
There was no immediate comment from the IAEA, which wants access to sites, officials and documents in Iran, including the Parchin military base where it believes nuclear-related explosives tests might have taken place, possibly a decade ago.
The IAEA's discussions with Iran are separate from broader negotiations between Tehran and six world powers that resumed in Geneva last month and will continue there on November 7 and 8.
But both diplomatic tracks center on suspicions that Iran may be seeking the capability to make nuclear weapons.
If Amano's trip is confirmed, it would be his first visit to the Iranian capital since May 2012. That time, he returned saying he expected to sign a deal with Iran soon to unblock the agency's investigation, only to see it fail to materialize.
After years of worsening confrontation with the West, Iran has switched to a conciliatory mode - entailing diplomacy in search of a peaceful solution to its disputed nuclear activity - since the June election of moderate President Hassan Rouhani.
The International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran have held a series of fruitless meetings since early 2012 to agree ground rules for the IAEA's inquiry, but hopes for a breakthrough have been lifted by Rouhani's rise.
The Islamic Republic denies seeking nuclear weapons, saying it wants only civilian atomic energy.
Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's atomic energy organization, said he hoped the two sides would reach an agreement during Amano's visit, state television said on its web site, without giving details.
There was no immediate comment from the IAEA, which wants access to sites, officials and documents in Iran, including the Parchin military base where it believes nuclear-related explosives tests might have taken place, possibly a decade ago.
The IAEA's discussions with Iran are separate from broader negotiations between Tehran and six world powers that resumed in Geneva last month and will continue there on November 7 and 8.
But both diplomatic tracks center on suspicions that Iran may be seeking the capability to make nuclear weapons.
If Amano's trip is confirmed, it would be his first visit to the Iranian capital since May 2012. That time, he returned saying he expected to sign a deal with Iran soon to unblock the agency's investigation, only to see it fail to materialize.
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