The watchdog said Iran had begun enriching uranium up to 20%.
The United Nations atomic watchdog says Iran has begun producing uranium enriched with more efficient advanced centrifuges at the Fordow plant dug in the mountains, the United Nations atomic watchdog. The country said on Wednesday, further eroding the 2015 Iran nuclear deal in talks with the West about saving it.
The announcement appears to have cut indirect talks between Iran and the United States on bringing both back to full swing with the deal resuming this week after a five-month hiatus due to the Presidential election. tough Ebrahim Raisi.
Western negotiators fear Iran is creating facts on the basis of gaining leverage in the negotiations.
On the third day of this round of talks, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran had begun enriching uranium to a purity of up to 20% with a stage, or cluster, of 166 machines. Advanced IR-6 at Fordow. These machines are much more efficient than the first generation IR-1.
Underscoring how severely the agreement has been eroded, it does not allow Iran to enrich uranium at Fordow at all. So far, they have produced enriched uranium there with IR-1 machines and have enriched with some IR-6 without retaining the product.
The IAEA said in a statement it had 94 IR-6s installed in one floor at Fordow that had yet to be operational.
A more comprehensive IAEA report was sent to member states and was told by Reuters that due to Iran’s move, the nuclear watchdog planned to increase inspections at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant. (FFEP) where the centrifuges are located, but the details still need to be checked. iron out.
Iran refuses to report as usual, although the IAEA does not provide a clear reason for such reports, usually only reporting because of important developments such as new violations of the agreement’s nuclear restrictions.
“The IAEA’s recent report on Iran’s nuclear activities is a routine update in line with routine verification in Iran,” said Iran’s permanent mission to UN organizations in Vienna. on Twitter.
Iran and world powers are trying to revive a 2015 deal under which Tehran limited its nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions by the US, EU and UN.
Then-US President Donald Trump abandoned the deal in 2018 and re-imposed harsh US sanctions, angering Iran and dismaying the other parties: Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia.
This week’s indirect talks between Tehran and Washington – with others between them because of Iran’s refusal to meet US officials – have produced no tangible progress.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman on Wednesday accused Israel of “inflating lies to poison” the negotiations.
While it’s unclear what the spokesman was referring to, a Tel Aviv-based reporter for the US news organization Axios on Monday said Israel has shared intelligence over the past two weeks with the United States. and European allies indicate that Iran is taking technical steps to prepare to enrich uranium to 90% purity, the level needed for a nuclear weapon.
Iran says its nuclear program is purely for peaceful purposes.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and was automatically generated from the feed provided.)
