UN Nuclear Watchdog Has 'Serious Concern' at Iran Denying Inspections

By Jastinder Khera

Iran has now accumulated enriched uranium at nearly eight times the limit of a 2015 deal and has for months blocked inspections at sites where historic nuclear activity may have occurred, the UN watchdog said Friday.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) noted "with serious concern that, for over four months, Iran has denied access to the Agency... to two locations," according to a report seen by AFP.

The IAEA has questions as to the possible "use or storage of nuclear material" at the two sites and that one of them "may have been used for the processing and conversion of uranium ore including fluorination in 2003".

The aforementioned site "underwent significant changes in 2004, including the demolition of most buildings", the IAEA report noted.

A third site where the IAEA has queries about the possible presence of undeclared natural uranium "underwent extensive sanitization and leveling in 2003 and 2004," according to the report.

The findings are expected to be discussed at a meeting of the agency's board of governors, which has been delayed until the week starting June 15.

The United States has been particularly vocal in its criticism of Iran for 
refusing access to the sites.

A diplomatic source said that they "expect that the board will be united to request Iran to provide access" for the agency.

Escalating Tensions

In a separate report, the IAEA warned that Iran's enriched uranium stockpile is now almost eight times the limit set in a 2015 deal.

The limit was 300 kilograms (661 pounds) of enriched uranium in a particular compound form, which is the equivalent of 202.8 kg of uranium. 

In comparison to the latter number, the report said Iran's stockpile stood at 1,571.6 kg on May 20.

The highest level of enrichment in the stockpile is currently 4.5 percent, over the deal's limit of 3.67 percent but far below the more than 90 percent level experts say would be necessary for a nuclear weapon.

A diplomatic source said that Iran's rate of enrichment had not significantly changed since the agency's previous report on the issue in early March. 

The IAEA says that it still has access to all the nuclear sites needed in order to monitor Iran's current nuclear activity despite difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The agency has been chartering aircraft to get its inspectors to Iran due to the collapse in availability of commercial flights to the country, which has been hard hit COVID-19.

Inspectors are also being tested for the virus before departing for Iran and before they return. 

Iran has been progressively breaking the restrictions laid down in the 2015 deal in retaliation for US President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the accord in 2018 and the US's subsequent re-imposition of sanctions. 

Iran reached the deal to curb its nuclear activities in return for sanctions relief with the United States—under president Barack Obama—Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China.

Last week the US said it was ending waivers in its sanctions for nations that remain in the Iran nuclear accord, bringing the deal further to the verge of collapse.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington escalated after Trump abandoned the deal and the long-standing enemies have appeared to come to the brink of a direct conflict twice in the past year.

The most recent was in January when Iran fired a barrage of missiles at US troops stationed in Iraq in retaliation for a US drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani, a top Iranian general.

 Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Friday brushed aside Trump's hopes of diplomatic progress after the two countries carried out a prisoner swap.

"We achieved humanitarian swap *despite* your subordinates' efforts," Zarif tweeted, emphasizing that it was the US that had walked away from the 2015 deal.

Photo: Wikicommons

Iran Says 'Daily Enrichment' of Uranium Higher Than 2015

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Thursday that his country's "daily enrichment" of uranium was currently "higher" than before the conclusion of the 2015 nuclear deal.

Rouhani, who instigated the negotiations, made the comments while justifying his nuclear policy and Iran's progressive disengagement from the accord. He also stated his willingness to continue dialogue on the agreement. 

"Today, we are under no restrictions in the area of nuclear energy," he said during a speech in Tehran. 

"Our daily enrichment (of uranium) is higher than it was before... the agreement," he added, in remarks apparently directed at Iranian ultraconservatives who denounce his nuclear policy as a total failure.

Rouhani did not specify whether Iran was now producing a greater quantity of enriched uranium, or whether it was enriching ore with uranium 235 isotopes at a higher level than before the deal. 

The 2015 agreement was struck in Vienna between Iran and  France, Britain, Germany, the United States, China and Russia.

But it has threatened to collapse since President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States in 2018, before reimposing a series of intensifying economic sanctions on Iran. 

In response, Tehran has progressively reduced a number of its key commitments to an agreement that drastically limited its nuclear activities.

Iran is now producing uranium enriched beyond the 3.67 percent set by the agreement, and no longer adheres to the limit of 300 kilograms (660 pounds) imposed on its enriched uranium stocks.

The Islamic republic announced on January 5 that it was no longer bound by limits on the number of centrifuges it could run to enrich uranium, saying this was its last step back from the commitments it made in Vienna. 

Before then, Iran announced it was enriching uranium to a level of five percent, far from the 90 percent needed to produce an atomic bomb. Before the nuclear deal, Iran was enriching uranium to 20 percent. 

A source close to the International Atomic Energy Agency told AFP on January 10 that there had been "no notable change in Iran's nuclear activity" since January 5.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Says to Resume Enrichment at Underground Plant

President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday that Iran would resume uranium enrichment at an underground plant south of Tehran in its latest step back from a troubled 2015 agreement with major powers.

The suspension of all enrichment at the Fordow plant in the mountains near the Shiite holy city of Qom was one of the restrictions on its nuclear activities that Iran accepted in return for the lifting of international sanctions.

But Washington's abandonment of the deal in May last year followed by its reimposition of crippling sanctions prompted Iran to begin a phased suspension of its own commitments in May this year.

Rouhani recalled that under the terms of the agreement Iran had retained more than 1,000 centrifuges at the plant which had been running empty since it went into effect.

"Starting from tomorrow (Wednesday), we will begin injecting (uranium hexafluoride) gas at Fordo," Rouhani said in a speech broadcast by state television.

His announcement came a day after tensions flared anew on the 40th anniversary of the US embassy siege and hostage crisis, with thousands in Tehran taking to the streets and Washington imposing fresh sanctions.

Iran said the resumption of enrichment at Fordow would be carried out transparently and witnessed by inspectors from the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency.

But Russia, which has close ties with Iran, expressed concern about the latest move.

"We are monitoring the development of the situation with concern," President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"We support the preservation of this deal."

At the same time, Peskov said Moscow understood Tehran's concerns over the "unprecedented and illegal sanctions" imposed by Washington.

The move is the fourth announced by Iran since it began responding to Washington's abandonment of its commitments.

'Committed to Negotiations'

Iran has repeatedly warned the remaining parties to the deal—Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia—that the agreement can only be rescued if they help it circumvent US sanctions.

European governments have strived to come up with a mechanism that would allow foreign firms to continue to do business with Iran without incurring US penalties.

But to Iran's mounting frustration, their efforts have so far failed to have any significant impact.

Rouhani stressed that Iran remained committed to efforts to save the 2015 agreement despite its phased suspension of some of its commitments.

"The fourth phase, like the three previous ones, is reversible," he said.

"We are committed to all the behind-the-scenes negotiations we have with some countries for a solution.

"Over the next two months, we will negotiate more."

Rouhani said Iran wanted to return to a situation in which "we can easily sell our oil, we can easily use our money in banks."

If that were achieved, "we will completely go back to the previous situation."

The European Union warned Monday that its continued support for the deal depended on Tehran fulfilling its commitments.

Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini, said the bloc "remains committed" to the deal but "our commitment... depends on full compliance by Iran".

"We have continued to urge Iran to reverse such steps without delay and to refrain from other measures that would undermine the nuclear deal."

On July 1, Iran said it had increased its stockpile of enriched uranium to beyond a 300-kilo maximum set by the deal, and a week later, it announced it had exceeded a 3.67-percent cap on the purity of its uranium stocks.

On September 7, it fired up advanced centrifuges to boost its enriched uranium stockpiles.

On Monday, Iran announced a more than tenfold increase in enriched uranium production as a result of the steps back from the nuclear deal it had already undertaken.

Enriched uranium production has reached five kilogrammes per day, Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation, told reporters.

That compares with the level of 450 grams two months ago.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Announces Sharp Rise in Enriched Uranium Production

By Amir Havasi

Iran announced Monday a more than tenfold increase in enriched uranium production following a series of steps back from commitments under a 2015 nuclear deal abandoned by the United States.

The Islamic republic has also developed two new advanced centrifuges, one of which is undergoing testing, Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, announced.

Enriched uranium production has reached five kilograms per day, Salehi told reporters at the Natanz facility in central Iran in remarks broadcast by state television.

That compares with the level of 450 grams two months ago.

Tehran decided in May to suspend certain nuclear commitments, a year after US President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal between world powers and Iran and reimposed sanctions on the country.

Tehran has so far hit back with three packages of countermeasures and threatened to go even further if the remaining partners to the deal -- Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia -- fail to help it circumvent US sanctions.

After the latest announcement, the European Union warned that its support for the nuclear deal depends on Tehran fulfilling its commitments.

"We have continued to urge Iran to reverse such steps without delay and to refrain from other measures that would undermine the nuclear deal," said Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini.

Although the EU "remained committed" to the accord, "we have also been consistent in saying that our commitment to the nuclear deal depends on full compliance by Iran", she told reporters in Brussels.

On July 1, Iran said it had increased its stockpile of enriched uranium to beyond a 300-kilo maximum set by the deal, and a week later, it announced it had exceeded a 3.67-percent cap on the purity of its uranium stocks.

It fired up advanced centrifuges to boost its enriched uranium stockpiles on September 7.

Salehi said Iranian engineers "have successfully built a prototype of IR-9, which is our newest machine, and also a model of a new machine called IR-s ... all these in two months.”

EU Deadline Over

Iran has removed all of its IR-1 centrifuges—the sole deal-approved machines—and is now using advanced models, leading to the sharp increase in enriched uranium production, he added.

"We must thank the enemy for bringing about this opportunity to show the might of the Islamic republic of Iran, especially in the nuclear industry," Salehi said.

"This is while some say (Iran's) nuclear industry was destroyed!" he said, laughing.

Iran will take the fourth step of walking back on the nuclear accord on Tuesday, semi-official news agency ISNA reported without specifying details.

The announcement came as Iranians held mass rallies four decades to the day after revolutionary students stormed the US embassy in the capital and took dozens of American diplomats and staff hostage.

It took a full 444 days for the crisis to end with the release of 52 Americans, but the US broke off diplomatic relations with Iran in 1980 and ties have been frozen ever since.

Monday also marked the end of the 60-day deadline Iran gave to Europe to either provide it with the economic benefits of the nuclear agreement or see even more commitments abandoned.

The European parties to the Vienna deal have repeatedly called on Iran to stay within the accord's framework but their efforts to skirt unilateral US sanctions have so far borne no fruit.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called French President Emmanuel Macron's efforts to set up talks between Iran and the US to break the impasse "naive".

Macron's efforts to initiate a phone call between US President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September ended in failure.

Rouhani stressed he would only hold talks with the US if sanctions were lifted first.

Photo: IRNA

Atomic Watchdog Chief in Iran for High-Level Talks

The acting head of the UN atomic watchdog, Cornel Feruta, arrived in Tehran on Sunday for high-level talks with Iranian officials, the semi-official ISNA news agency reported.

The International Atomic Energy Agency official's visit comes a day after Iran announced its latest step in reducing its commitments to a 2015 nuclear deal.

The Romanian diplomat was to meet Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation chief Ali Akbar Salehi, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, and Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, ISNA said.

The IAEA said the visit was part of its "ongoing interactions" with Tehran, including "verification and monitoring in Iran under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)," the technical name for the 2015 deal.

The accord gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation said on Saturday that it had fired up 20 IR-4 and 20 IR-6 advanced centrifuges -- a third step it has taken back from the nuclear deal.

Despite the latest move, the agency said Iran would allow the IAEA to continue monitoring its nuclear facilities in accordance with the 2015 agreement.

In response, the IAEA said it had noted Iran's latest move and indicated its inspectors were ready to check its compliance.

"Agency inspectors are on the ground in Iran and they will report any relevant activities to IAEA headquarters in Vienna," spokesman Fredrik Dahl said.

Iran has taken a series of retaliatory steps to reduce compliance with the deal after the United States withdrew from it last year and began reimposing sanctions against the Islamic republic.

On July 1, Iran said it had increased its stockpile of enriched uranium to beyond the 300-kilogramme limit set by the agreement.

A week later, it announced it had exceeded the deal's uranium enrichment limit of 3.67 percent.

Feruta's visit to Tehran comes a day before the IAEA board of governors convenes for a quarterly meeting in Vienna, at which its verification and monitoring mission in Iran will be discussed.

In its latest report on August 30, the watchdog said it was continuing to verify compliance through cameras and on-site inspections.

But in an apparent hint at worries about access, it said "ongoing interactions... require full and timely cooperation by Iran.”

Photo: IRNA

Iran Continues Breaching Uranium Stockpile and Enrichment Limits

By Jonathan Tirone

International inspectors reported that Iran continued to exceed nuclear limits imposed under its landmark deal with world powers, a breach that has complicated European efforts to salvage the accord abandoned by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said Friday that Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile stood at 357 kilograms (787 pounds) and that it had enriched the heavy metal to a maximum purity of 4.5%, according to the six-page restricted document seen by Bloomberg News. The 2015 deal allows Iran to accumulate only 300kg of uranium enriched to 3.67%.

“The agency has continued to evaluate Iran’s declarations,” acting Director General Cornel Feruta wrote in the quarterly assessment sent to the IAEA’s board. “The agency continues to verify the non-diversion of declared nuclear material” while assessments of potential “undeclared nuclear material and activities for Iran remain ongoing,” Feruta said.

It’s the first inspections report since the death of IAEA Director Yukiya Amano in July and arrives at a sensitive diplomatic juncture. Monitors have come under intense U.S. and Israeli pressure to re-activate a probe into Iran’s past work on military uses for its nuclear know-how, an act that Tehran’s government says is unnecessary and would be antagonistic.

‘All Sites’

The report reiterated that over the last three months the IAEA had been allowed access “to all the sites and locations in Iran which it needed to visit.” The Vienna-based agency has hundreds of inspectors monitoring Iran, both on the ground daily at the country’s nuclear sites, as well as remotely using surveillance technologies.

Monitors urged Iran to provide “timely and proactive cooperation” regarding all sites. They said “technical discussions” continue on new, advanced nuclear equipment undergoing testing.

Ensuring the IAEA keeps wider inspections powers granted under the agreement is one reason top European foreign ministers met Friday in Helsinki. “The nuclear deal is the only deal on the table that prevents Iran from getting a nuclear weapon,” U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said before meeting his French and German counterparts.

While Iran acknowledges it’s breached limits set under the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, it rejects that it has violated the accord. That’s because the document allows participants to cease meeting commitments “in whole or in part” in the event of an unresolved dispute. Tehran’s government argues that Europe has an obligation to help it avoid reimposed U.S. sanctions, something the bloc has so far struggled to do.

Iran has warned that if it’s not able to resume oil sales, it’s prepared to escalate the nuclear dispute even further by enriching uranium to levels closer to what would be needed for military purposes.

The standoff over oil exports, that’s included the tit-for-tat seizing of tankers by U.K. and Iranian authorities, has also fueled concerns of a military confrontation in the Persian Gulf.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Passes Uranium Enrichment Cap Set by Endangered Deal

By Kay Armin Serjoie

Iran on Monday breached a uranium enrichment cap set by a troubled 2015 nuclear deal and warned Europe against taking retaliatory measures.

The move came more than a year after Washington pulled out of the landmark accord between world powers and Tehran, which says it has lost patience with perceived inaction by the remaining European partners.

Iran surpassing the cap and reaching 4.5 percent enrichment was announced Monday by the country's atomic energy organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi.

"This level of purity completely satisfies the power plant fuel requirements of the country," he said, quoted by semi-official ISNA news agency.

Kamalvandi hinted that the Islamic republic might stick to this level of enrichment for the time being, which is well below the more than 90-percent level required for a nuclear warhead.

The European Union said it was "extremely concerned" by the development and called on Iran to "reverse all activities" inconsistent with its deal commitments.

France, Germany and Britain—the European partners of the international deal—on Sunday urged Tehran to halt its advance towards breaching the cap.

After Tehran's latest step, US President Donald Trump held talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on "ongoing efforts to ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon and to end Iran's destabilizing behavior in the Middle East", the White House said in a statement.

But Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi warned against any escalatory response.

If the Europeans "do certain strange acts then we would skip all the next steps (in the plan to scale back commitments) and implement the last one," he said.

He did not specify what the final step would be but Iran's President Hassan Rouhani had warned previously that Iran could leave the nuclear accord.

'Bullying' By the US

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted Sunday that Iran would face "further isolation and sanctions".

China and Russia, the other deal partners, both blamed the United States for the latest step by Iran.

Beijing accused Washington of "unilateral bullying", while Moscow said passing the cap was one of the "consequences" of the White House abandoning the deal.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday singled out declining oil sales and the effect of financial sanctions as the main issues that needed to be solved, or Tehran would further step back from its nuclear commitments.

"We hope we can reach a solution, otherwise after 60 days we will take the third step as well," he said, adding that Tehran would give further details of that at an "opportune moment.”

Tehran says that it is not violating the deal, citing terms of the agreement allowing one side to temporarily abandon some of commitments if it deems the other side is not respecting its part of the accord.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, a key architect of the deal, cautioned "all such steps are reversible" if European partners deliver on their part.

Rouhani in May flagged Tehran's intentions to start enriching uranium above the agreed maximum purification level of 3.67 percent.

The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed this month that Iran has exceeded a 300-kilogram limit on enriched uranium reserves, a cap that was imposed by the deal.

The IAEA has scheduled a special meeting on Iran's nuclear program for July 10.

Photo:

Iran Set to Exceed Nuclear Deal Uranium Enrichment Cap

By Kay Armin Serjoie and Amir Havasi

Iran said Sunday it was set to breach the uranium enrichment cap set by an endangered nuclear deal within hours as it seeks to press other parties into keeping their side of the bargain.

The Islamic republic also threatened to abandon more commitments unless a solution is found with parties to the landmark 2015 agreement.London said Iran had "broken the terms" of the accord and along with Berlin urged Tehran to halt its advance towards breaching the cap.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that Tehran could further scale back its commitments to the deal, but "all such steps are reversible" if European countries deliver on their part.

The move to start enriching uranium above the agreed maximum purification level of 3.67 percent comes despite opposition from the European Union and the United States, which has quit the deal.

President Hassan Rouhani's order to exceed the threshold would be implemented "in a few hours" after the last technical details were sorted, Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said live on state television.

Rouhani initially flagged Tehran's intentions on May 8, exactly a year on from US President Donald Trump abandoning the multilateral pact.

The Iranian president has said the move is in response to a failure by remaining parties to help Iran work around biting sanctions reimposed by the US.

The arch-rivals have been locked in an escalating war of words with Washington blaming Iran for a series of attacks on tanker ships and Tehran shooting down an American surveillance drone, raising fears of a conflict that both sides have said they want to avoid.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said in recent days that Iran has exceeded a 300-kilogram limit on enriched uranium reserves, a cap that was imposed by the 2015 deal.

Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday singled out Iran's declining oil sales and the effect of financial sanctions as the main issues that needed to be solved, or Tehran would further step back from its nuclear commitments.

"We hope we can reach a solution otherwise after 60 days we will take the third step as well," he said, adding that Tehran would give further details at an "opportune moment.”

Iran has previously threatened to also resume building as of July 7 a heavy water reactor—capable of one day producing plutonium—in Arak in central Iran, a project that had been mothballed under the agreement.

However since Iran delivered its ultimatum on the Arak reactor "good technical progress" had been made with parties on modernizing the reactor in a way that would not produce military grade plutonium, convincing Iran to postpone its decision, Araghchi said.

'At any Level'

The 2015 deal was reached between Iran and six world powers—Britain, China, France, Germany, the United States and Russia—and saw Tehran agree to drastically scale down its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.

Washington began reimposing sanctions in August 2018 and has targeted crucial sectors including oil exports and the banking system, fueling a deep recession.

Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said Sunday that this body was fully ready to enrich uranium "at any amount and at any level" if ordered to do so.

A top advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hinted Friday it could reach five percent.

The 3.67 percent enrichment limit set in the agreement is far below the more than 90 percent level required for a nuclear warhead.Iran says that it is not violating the deal, citing terms of the agreement allowing one side to temporarily abandon some of commitments if it deems the other side is not respecting its part of the accord.

'Playing with Fire'

Britain and Germany said Sunday they were coordinating with other partners to the deal.

In separate statements, their foreign ministries called on Iran to "stop and reverse all activities inconsistent with its commitments."

France expressed "great concern" and demanded Tehran "Iran halt all activities that do not meet its commitments," a foreign ministry spokeswoman said.

French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to Rouhani by phone Saturday and pledged to "explore by July 15 the conditions for a resumption of dialogue between all parties," according to a statement from the Elysee Palace.

Iran says it exercised "strategic patience" for a year after the US withdrawal, waiting for the remaining partners to make good on promised economic benefits.

Trump has warned Iran that it is "playing with fire" by scrapping limits set by the accord.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday's announcement was a “very dangerous step" and called on France, Britain and Germany to impose "harsh sanctions" on Iran.

The IAEA has scheduled a special meeting on Iran's nuclear program for July 10.

Photo: IRNA

IAEA to Hold Special Meeting on Iran on 10 July

The UN's nuclear watchdog said Friday it will hold a special meeting on Iran's nuclear program next week, days after Tehran breached one of the limits set in a 2015 deal with world powers.

The meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s board of governors would be held "on 10 July at 14:30," an IAEA spokesman said.

Earlier, the US mission in Vienna said in a statement that the American Ambassador to International Organizations Jackie Wolcott had requested the special meeting to discuss the IAEA's latest report on Iran, issued earlier this week.

In it, the IAEA confirmed that Iran had breached the limit of 300kg for stockpiles of enriched uranium as stipulated under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The US statement described the news of the breach as "concerning.”

"The international community must hold Iran's regime accountable," the statement added.

Iran has said that as of Sunday it will begin breaking another key limit set in the JCPOA, which restricts the enrichment level of its uranium stockpile to 3.67 percent.

Iran has said the breaches announced so far would be reversible "within hours" if progress is made in providing Iran with relief from US sanctions.

The US was originally a party to the JCPOA but in May 2018 President Donald Trump dramatically withdrew from the accord.

Since then the US has re-imposed sanctions and has attempted to prevent Iran from exporting oil, a vital part of its economy.

Analysts say that the breaches announced by Iran so far mean very little in terms of any possible attempt by Tehran to develop a nuclear weapon, but are rather designed to pressure the remaining parties to the JCPOA.

Russia is also a party to the JCPOA and its ambassador to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, said in a tweet Friday that an IAEA board of governors' meeting was "not a proper place to consider" what he called "Iranian deviations from (the) JCPOA".

"From the viewpoint of (the) IAEA mandate they don't constitute violation or concern," Ulyanov said.

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Iran to Exceed Uranium Enrichment Maximum Despite Calls for Rethink

By Amir Havasi

Iran ignored US and EU warnings Wednesday and announced it will exceed the maximum enrichment level it agreed for uranium within days in response to the failure of the other parties to a 2015 nuclear deal to provide it with promised relief from sanctions.

Iran is acting on its May 8 threat to suspend parts of the agreement in response to US President Donald Trump's reimposition of crippling sanctions after withdrawing from it in May last year.

“On July 7, our enrichment level will no longer be 3.67 percent. We will put aside this commitment. We will increase (the enrichment level) beyond 3.67 percent to as much as we want, as much as is necessary, as much as we need," Rouhani said during a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

The enrichment maximum set in the agreement is sufficient for power generation but far below the more than 90 percent level required for a nuclear warhead.

Rouhani stressed that Iran's action would be reversed if the other parties to the nuclear deal made good on their side of the bargain—relief from sanctions.

"We will remain committed to the (nuclear deal) as long as the other parties are committed. We will act on the JCPOA 100 percent the day that the other party acts 100 percent (too).”

Iran has sought to pressure the other parties—Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia—to save the deal.

It announced on May 8 it would no longer respect the limits set on the size of its stockpiles of enriched uranium and heavy water.

It threatened to abandon further nuclear commitments, including exceeding the agreed uranium enrichment maximum from July 7.

Rouhani said Iran will also deliver on its threat to resume construction of a heavy water reactor after July 7 and will bring it to the condition that "according to you, is dangerous and can produce plutonium."

He added the measures can be reversed in "hours" if the other parties "live up to their commitments."

'Playing with Fire'

US President Donald Trump warned Monday that Iran is "playing with fire" after Tehran said it had exceeded the limit set on its enriched uranium stockpile.

Rouhani said it was the US that started the fire and Washington has to "put it out" by returning to the nuclear deal.

His adviser, Hesamodin Ashena, warned Trump against listening to hawks in his administration, hinting aggression against Iran could make him a "one-term president.”

"We have unseated an American president in the past, we can do it again," he tweeted, referring to Jimmy Carter whose bid for a second term was marred by the Iran hostage crisis in 1980.

Israel urged European states to slap sanctions on Iran for abandoning its nuclear commitments.

Russia voiced regret but said the move was a consequence of US pressure, which has pushed the deal towards collapse.

The diplomatic chiefs of Britain, France, Germany and the EU said they were "extremely concerned" and urged Iran to reverse its decision.

Europe has sought to save the nuclear deal by setting up a payment mechanism known as INSTEX which is meant to help Iran skirt the US sanctions.

Rouhani dismissed the mechanism as "hollow", saying it was useless to Iran because it failed to provide for financing of purchases of Iranian oil.

He took issue with the EU for calling on Iran to stay committed to the deal, saying the deal "is either good or bad. If it's good, everyone should stay committed to it," not just Iran.

Photo: IRNA

Photo: IRNA

Iran Breaches Limit on Enriched Uranium Under Nuclear Accord

By Nour Al Ali and Ladane Nasseri

Iran said it had exceeded limits set on its enriched-uranium stockpile, a move that risks the collapse of the 2015 nuclear accord and raises concerns that a standoff with the U.S. could lead to military action.

“As I was informed, Iran has crossed the 300-kilogram cap according to plan,” the Iranian Students’ News Agency cited Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as saying. “We have clearly expressed what we are doing and will act upon it,” he said, saying the step was in line with Iran’s rights under the agreement after it was abrogated by the U.S.

The breach is likely to heighten tensions in the Persian Gulf that have spiked since the Trump administration exited the nuclear accord a year ago and reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran, prompting a warning that Tehran will ditch elements of the deal unless it’s given an economic lifeline by July 7. Attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for oil shipments from the Middle East, and the Iranian downing of an American drone have raised concerns of another war in the region.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Abbas Mousavi said earlier on Monday that if European nations working to salvage the nuclear deal “take more concrete steps, Iran’s action in cutting back on its commitments can be rolled back,” according ISNA.

The move was “carefully calibrated” by authorities and “isn’t in itself dangerous because it can be reversed,” said Sanam Vakil, senior research fellow at Chatham House Middle East and North Africa Program. “It’s the action and reaction and what comes next—it’s a step in what can be a slippery slope.”

International Atomic Energy Agency spokesman Fredrik Dahl confirmed that Iran’s stockpile of low-grade enriched uranium exceeded 300 kilograms (661 pounds).

Iran was expected to breach the cap on Thursday, though it had appeared to back off from its warning following efforts led by European nations to preserve the accord. Seven more European countries agreed on Friday to support the U.K., Germany and France in rolling out a trade mechanism, known as Instex, that aims to protect trade with Iran from U.S. sanctions. Diplomats said the first transactions using the vehicle had been processed.

European powers opposed President Donald Trump’s decision last year to quit the multinational accord intended to curb Iran’s nuclear development in exchange for easing sanctions. But they have been so far unsuccessful developing effective ways to maintain economic relations that avoid the U.S. banking system and the sanctions that Trump reimposed.

At the same time, they had called for Iran to continue adhering to the accord, knowing that any violation would put European leaders in a difficult position with regard to U.S. officials.

Tehran “has been escalatory in pushing Europe to challenge the Trump administration” and European nations are “struggling to find a band aid” to keep the agreement alive, Vakil said.

The spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said the cap announcement was “extremely concerning” but the U.K. was working to keep the deal in place. Still, Britain’s commitment to the accord “relies on Iran complying with the full terms of the deal,” James Slack told reporters.

The nuclear deal was designed to prevent Iran from breaking out and constructing a weapon within a year, as the U.S. and its allies feared. The Arms Control Association, a Washington nonprofit, estimates Iran would need about 1,050 kilograms (2,315 pounds) of uranium enriched to 3.67% to build one bomb. The material would then need to undergo further enrichment.

Trump says he wants to negotiate a better deal that would also restrict Iran’s missile program and support for armed proxies around the region. But Iran says it can’t negotiate by force and while its economy and—more recently—its leaders are targeted by the U.S.

Russia said on Monday that Iran’s move to breach the limit on enriched uranium wasn’t a surprise, blaming the U.S.’s policy of maximum pressure.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Iran is confronting “unprecedented and unthinkable” U.S. efforts to throttle its economy, state news service RIA Novosti reported. At the same time, the leading Russian diplomat urged Iran to show restraint, voicing alarm at signals from Tehran it might pull out of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Won't Exceed Uranium Stockpile Limit on Thursday: Diplomatic Source

Iran will not exceed Thursday a uranium stockpile limit agreed under a nuclear deal with world powers, contrary to what Tehran said earlier this month, according to a diplomatic source in Vienna.

"They won't exceed it today," the source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The source suggested there might be a "political reason" for this, given the intensified efforts by European governments in recent days to de-escalate tensions in the Gulf region.

There was no indication to suggest the agreed limit would be exceeded this weekend either, the source added, underlining that Tehran can suspend its uranium enrichment activities at any time.

Iran said 10 days ago that it would surpass the agreed 300-kilogram (660-pound) reserve of enriched uranium on June 27 because it no longer felt bound by the 2015 deal which the United States unilaterally pulled out of in May 2018.

Vienna is home to the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency or IAEA, which is responsible for monitoring whether Iran is sticking to the terms of the nuclear deal.

Tehran has also threatened to start enriching uranium above the agreed purification level of 3.67 percent starting from July 7.

Under the landmark deal signed with world powers in 2015, Iran pledged to reduce its nuclear capacities for several years and to allow IAEA inspectors into the country to monitor its activities in return for relief from international sanctions.

The deal set a limit on the number of uranium-enriching centrifuges, and restricted Iran's right to enrich uranium to no higher than 3.67 percent, well below weapons-grade levels of about 90 percent.

But the deal has come under severe strain since Washington pulled out of it last year and slapped new economic sanctions on the Islamic republic.

On Tuesday, in a gesture seemingly aimed at reining in soaring tensions with the US, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told French President Emmanuel Macron in a telephone call that Iran "never seeks war" with any country.

Macron, for his part, said on the sidelines of a G20 meeting in Tokyo that he would do "the maximum" to "avert military escalation" between Iran and the US.

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday he does not want a war with Iran, but warned that if fighting does break out, it "wouldn't last very long".

Macron reiterated that France shared the US "strategic objective" that Iran should not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon.

Photo: IRNA

Macron Urges Iran to be 'Patient and Responsible' in Nuclear Deal

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday urged Iran to be "patient and responsible" after Tehran said it would surpass the uranium stockpile limit set under the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers that the US has abandoned.

"I regret Iran's announcements today.... We strongly encourage Iran to behave in a way that is patient and responsible," Macron said in a press conference at the presidential palace in Paris.

Iran said earlier it will surpass from June 27 the uranium stockpile limit set under the nuclear deal, turning up the pressure after the US walked away from the landmark pact last year.

Iran's atomic energy organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said that the move would be reversed "once other parties live up to their commitments."

To the dismay of Europe, President Donald Trump had unilaterally pulled the United States out of the nuclear deal last year, with Washington imposing tough sanctions on Iran.

Macron said that any kind of escalation in the nuclear standoff at the current time was in the interest of no-one.

"It is damaging to the interests of the Iranians themselves and also to the international community," he said.

"So we will do everything with our partners to dissuade Iran from this (surpassing the limit)," he said.

The United States has blamed Iran for last week's attacks on two tankers in the Gulf of Oman, a charge Tehran has denied as "baseless.”

Macron took a more circumspect line, saying that "only once all the information has been gathered and all the doubts lifted can the attributions (of blame) be made in a certain way."

"I think that in the period that we are entering into it is useful to show calm," he added.

Photo: Wikicommons

Germany, UK Warn Iran Over Uranium Plans as EU Urges Caution

Germany and Britain on Monday warned Tehran not to breach uranium stockpile limits set by the 2015 nuclear deal, as the EU's diplomatic chief dismissed Iranian threats as "political dialectics".

Iran set a 10-day countdown on Monday to exceed the 300-kilogram limit set on its enriched uranium stocks, dealing another blow to the crumbling nuclear accord signed by Tehran and six international powers.

The EU has battled to save the agreement since US President Donald Trump withdrew and reimposed sanctions, but Iran said it would step back from exceeding the 300-kg limit on June 27 only if "other parties live up to their commitments.”

The move comes as Iran tries to step up pressure on the deal's other signatories—Germany, France, Britain, China and Russia—to help it sidestep US sanctions and in particular enable it to sell oil.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas rejected the Iranian ultimatum and insisted Tehran must stick to its commitments under the deal.

"We have already said in the past that we will not accept less for less. It is up to Iran to stick to its obligations," Maas said after talks with EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.

"We will certainly not accept a unilateral reduction of obligations."

A spokesman for the British government echoed the call, saying the E3—the European signatories to the deal—has "consistently made clear that there can be no reduction in compliance".

"For now Iran remains within its nuclear commitments. We are coordinating with E3 partners on next steps," the spokesman added.

The European Union's diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini said the bloc would not act on the basis of Iranian rhetoric but wait for reports by the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

"Our assessment on the implementation of the nuclear deal has never been, is not and will never be based on statements, but on the evaluation that the IAEA makes, the reports that the IAEA produces and that can be done at any time," Mogherini said after the talks.

"Announcements are relevant elements of political dialectics but our assessment on the implementation of the agreement is based on the factual, technically sound assessment and evaluation that the IAEA makes in its reports."

On May 8, President Hassan Rouhani said Iran would stop observing restrictions on its stocks of enriched uranium and heavy water agreed under the 2015 nuclear deal.

Rouhani said the move was in retaliation for the unilateral US withdrawal from the accord a year earlier, which saw Washington impose tough economic sanctions on Tehran.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington have escalated ever since, with the United States bolstering its military presence in the region and blacklisting Iran's Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization.

Photo: IRNA

Iran to Surpass Uranium Stockpile Deal Limit from June 27: Nuclear Official

By Amir Havasi

Iran will surpass the uranium stockpile limit set under the nuclear deal agreed with world powers from June 27, a top official said Monday on state television.

"Today the countdown to pass the 300 kilograms reserve of enriched uranium has started and in 10 days time we will pass this limit," Iran's atomic energy organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said at a press conference broadcast live.

"This is based on the Articles 26 and 36 of the (nuclear deal), and will be reversed once other parties live up to their commitments," he added, speaking from the Arak nuclear plant south-west of Tehran.

On May 8, President Hassan Rouhani announced that Iran would stop observing restrictions on its stocks of enriched uranium and heavy water agreed under the 2015 nuclear deal.

He said the move was in retaliation for the unilateral US withdrawal from the accord a year earlier, which saw Washington impose tough economic sanctions on Tehran.

Iran has threatened to go even further by July 8 unless remaining partners to the deal—Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia—help it circumvent US sanctions and especially enable it to sell its oil.

Under the agreement, Iran pledged to reduce its nuclear capacities for several years and allow international inspectors inside the country to monitor its activities in return for relief from international sanctions.

The deal set a limit on the number of uranium-enriching centrifuges, and restricted its right to enrich uranium to no higher than 3.67 percent, well below weapons-grade levels of around 90 percent.

It also called on Iran to export enriched uranium and heavy water to ensure that the country's reserves would stay within the production ceiling set by the agreement, yet recent US restrictions have made such exports virtually impossible.

According to Rouhani, his ultimatum last month was intended to "save the (deal), not destroy it".

The three European parties to the accord created a trade mechanism meant to bypass US sanctions, but their attempt was dismissed by Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a "bitter joke."

If world powers do not step up to help Iran, the atomic energy organization spokesman warned further steps could be taken.

"They range from going to 3.68 percent to any other percent according to the country's needs," said Kamalvandi.

Authorities are still debating whether to "redesign or revive" the Arak reactor, he added.

Uranium enriched to much higher levels than Iran's current stocks can be used as the fissile core of a nuclear weapon, while heavy water is a source of plutonium, which can be used as an alternative way to produce a warhead.

"A point to Europeans: if the first step took time to be done, other steps, especially increasing enrichment... need no more than a day or two," said Kamalvandi.

Germany has acknowledged the economic benefits Tehran hoped for from the deal were now "more difficult to obtain", but has urged Iran to fully respect the "extraordinarily important" nuclear deal.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Says to Go Beyond Previous Enrichment If Deal Fails

Iran will begin uranium enrichment beyond previous levels if the remaining parties fail to uphold the 2015 nuclear deal, its Atomic Energy Organization told local media on Wednesday.

"We will not return to previous levels if our counterparts leave the JCPOA (nuclear deal), but will instead reach even more advanced levels," the organization's spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said, quoted by state broadcaster IRIB.

"We are at a considerably more advanced status than when we signed the deal. The country is moving ahead in nuclear activities at a favorable pace," he added.

Iran has repeatedly said it will resume high-level uranium enrichment if the 2015 agreement—which stringently limits its nuclear program in return for sanctions relief—falls apart.

Following the withdrawal of the United States in May, the other parties—Britain, France, Germany, China, Russia and the EU—have vowed to provide Iran with enough economic benefits to keep the agreement alive.

But Tehran is increasingly skeptical that those countries can counter the effects of renewed US sanctions, which have already battered Iran's economy.

Last week, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Iran should be ready to "set aside" the agreement if it is no longer in the country's national interests.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has repeatedly stated that Iran is sticking to its commitments

The administration of US President Donald Trump claims the deal did not prevent Iran from eventually working towards a nuclear weapon—which Tehran has denied it is seeking.

Photo Credit: CGTN

Iran 'Preparing' to Enrich if Nuclear Deal Fails: Official

Iran is ready to boost its uranium enrichment to higher levels if talks fail with Europe on salvaging the nuclear deal, a top official said Tuesday.

"We have of course adopted some measures in order to prepare the ground for eventually increasing the level of enrichment if it is needed and if the negotiations with the Europeans fail," Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman and vice-president of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, told a news conference in Tehran.

"We are of course continuing to carry out and implement our obligations based on the JCPOA," he said, referring to the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers that put strict limits on its atomic program in return for sanctions relief.

"But at the same time, taking every scenario into consideration, we are preparing ourselves," he added.

The United States announced in May that it was abandoning the 2015 agreement and reimposing nuclear-related sanctions, threatening global companies with heavy penalties if they continue to operate in Iran.

In a bid to save the accord, the EU and European parties to the deal—Britain, France and Germany—presented a series of economic "guarantees" to Iran this month, but these were judged "insufficient" by Tehran.

Negotiations are continuing, and foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said Monday they could last several "weeks", according to state television.

In June, in a bid to mount pressure on the Europeans, Iran announced a plan to increase its uranium enrichment capacity with new centrifuges in the event that the agreement collapses, while still denying any desire to build a nuclear weapon.

Under the 2015 agreement, Iran can only enrich uranium to 3.67 percent—far below the roughly 90-percent level needed for nuclear weapons.

Photo Credit: IRNA

Iran, World Powers to Meet on Nuclear Deal in Vienna on Friday

The foreign ministers of Iran and five world powers still party to the 2015 nuclear deal will meet in Vienna on Friday for talks on the troubled accord, state media in Tehran said.

The top diplomats of Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia will join Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in the Austrian capital, Iran's official IRNA news agency reported, for their first talks together on the deal since Washington pulled out earlier this year.

During the meeting the ministers will discuss an "incentive package" the European Union is offering to try to persuade Iran to stay in the agreement, IRNA reported.

The meeting will seek "solutions to preserve the Iran nuclear deal after the illegal US action to withdraw," it said.

The announcement came with President Hassan Rouhani in Europe to rally support for the deal.

Rouhani, accompanied by Zarif, was in Switzerland on Tuesday and due to head on Wednesday to Vienna, where the accord was signed in 2015.

US President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled out of the agreement two months ago, to the ire of the other signatories which along with the European Union have continued to back the accord.

Iran has warned it is ready to resume uranium enrichment to 20 percent—above the level permitted in the deal—"within days" if the agreement falls apart.

Photo Credit: IRNA

Nuclear Deal Collapse Would Be 'Very Dangerous': Iran Minister

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif warned Sunday that failure to save the nuclear deal after the exit of the United States would be "very dangerous" for Tehran. 

The United States announced in May that it was withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposing sanctions that would hit international businesses working in the Islamic republic.

The other parties to the deal—Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia—have vowed to stay in the accord but appear powerless to stop their companies pulling out of Iran for fear of US penalties. 

"Failure of the JCPOA (nuclear deal) would be very dangerous for us," Zarif told members of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, quoted by the official IRNA news agency.

IRNA did not say if he amplified on the dangers posed to Iran. "This is certainly not the (Iranian political) system's choice," added Zarif, one of the architect's of the nuclear pact.

Iran has been holding talks with European Union leaders and other officials seeking ways to keep the deal alive, as well as economic guarantees.

Some European firms doing business in Iran have begun to pack up and leave since the US exit, while the rial has lost more than 47 percent of its value against the dollar since September.

Following the US decision to pull out of the deal in May, Zarif embarked on a tour of Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia.

And President Hassan Rouhani is expected to visit Switzerland and Austria in July as part of Iran's efforts to secure continued European support for the deal, Bern and Vienna have said.

Iran has warned it is ready to resume uranium enrichment to 20 percent "within days" if the deal falls apart.  

That is still within civilian-use limits, and Iran has always insisted its nuclear programme is not for military purposes, but the level is far above the 3.67 percent enrichment permitted under the 2015 agreement.  

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has warned Iran "will never tolerate both suffering from sanctions and nuclear restrictions" and called for preparations to speed up uranium enrichment.

Photo Credit: Hadi Zand, ISNA

Iran Enrichment Plan Not in Breach of Nuclear Deal: EU

The EU said Tuesday that a "first assessment" indicated that Iran's announcement that it has launched a plan to boost uranium enrichment capacity did not breach its commitments under the beleaguered 2015 nuclear deal.

Iran has notified the International Atomic Energy Agency that it plans to open a centre for producing new centrifuges, the Islamic Republic's nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said Tuesday, drawing an angry response from arch-foe Israel.

The European Union, which is working to save the 2015 agreement with Iran after the US pulled out, warned the Iranian announcement would not help build confidence in the Iranian program, but said it did not constitute a breach of the deal.

"Following a first assessment, the announced steps per se are not a violation of the JCPOA," Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini, told AFP. The agreement is officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

"However, at this particularly critical juncture, they will not contribute to build confidence in the nature of the Iranian nuclear program."

Salehi stressed that his announcement was just the start of the production process and did not mean Iran was about to start assembling centrifuges.

Under the 2015 nuclear agreement that Iran signed with the US, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany after years of difficult talks, Tehran can build and test parts for advanced centrifuges, but specific restrictions exist on what technology can be researched and in what quantity within the first decade of the deal.

European governments have been trying to salvage the nuclear deal since the United States last month withdrew and said it would reimpose sanctions on foreign companies working in the Islamic republic by November.

The remaining parties have vowed to stay in the accord but many of their companies have already started to wind down Iranian operations.

A European source told AFP that the Iranian enrichment announcement is being interpreted as a bid to step up the pressure on Brussels to deliver on these promises.

The EU is trying to come up with ways to persuade Iran to stick with the deal by protecting the economic benefits it gained when tough sanctions were lifted in return for it halting its nuclear program.

"As stated repeatedly, we expect Iran to stick to all its JCPOA commitments, to be monitored by the IAEA, as it has been doing so far and has been confirmed by the IAEA in 11 consecutive reports," Kocijancic told AFP.

"The IAEA is the only body in charge of the monitoring and verification of the implementation by Iran of its nuclear-related commitments under the JCPOA."

Photo Credit: EEAS