UN nuclear watchdog says Iran is enriching uranium

Tehran, Nov 23: The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Tuesday confirmed that Iran had begun enriching uranium to 60% purity at its Fordo facility, AFP news agency reported citing the chief of the IAEA.

"Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi today said Iran had started producing high enriched uranium... in the FordoFuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP), in addition to such production that has taken place at Natanz since April 2021," the IAEA said in a statement sent to AFP.

Iranian news agency ISNA reported uranium enrichment was taking place at the Fordo plant and cited the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI).

The AEOI said that this was in response to a resolution passed by the IAEA last week in which Tehran was accused of a lack of transparency regarding its nuclear programme and threatened to rope in the UN Security Council.

Program expansion condemned

Britain, France and Germany have slammed Iran's plans to expand its nuclear enrichment program.

"We, the governments of France, Germany and the United Kingdom condemn Iran"s latest steps, as confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), to further expand its nuclear programme," a joint statement issued by Britain read.

"Iran"s step is a challenge to the global non-proliferation system. This step, which carries significant proliferation-related risks, has no credible civilian justification," the E3 governments stressed.

"We will continue to consult, alongside international partners, on how best to address Iran"s continued nuclear escalation," the statement concluded.

In recent weeks the IAEA has expressed concern over uncertainties surrounding Iran's nuclear program and criticized Tehran for barring the body's officials from accessing nuclear sites.

Talks to breathe new life into the 2015 nuclear deal — which curbed Iran's nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief — have stalled.

The deal came apart at the seams when the US under the Trump administration pulled out and reimposed sanctions. Iran in return ramped up its nuclear program.

Source: DW