Gholam Reza Aghazadeh

Gholam Reza Aghazadeh served as head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran (AEOI) for fourteen years under Presidents Mohammad Khatami and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (1997–2011), the longest tenure of any AEOI head. He also served as Minister of Petroleum (1985–1997) under Khamenei when the latter was president. During his AEOI tenure he oversaw a major expansion of Iran's uranium enrichment capabilities, including the restart of the Natanz enrichment facility and the installation of first-generation centrifuges that became subjects of IAEA scrutiny. His name appears prominently in IAEA Board of Governors reports from the early 2000s concerning Iran's undisclosed nuclear activities. He resigned abruptly in July 2009 amid the post-election political crisis. He is named in connection with efforts to acquire nuclear-related materials for Iran's programme.