Iran has increased its production of near-weapons-grade uranium, the UN nuclear watchdog said on Tuesday – a day after Tehran issued an ominous threat to Israel.
The Persian Gulf nation has doubled its output of highly enriched uranium, reversing what has been a long enrichment slowdown that began last summer, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
It is currently enriching uranium to 60% purity at a rate of 9 kilograms (about 20 pounds) a month at its Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant and its Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, the IAEA said.
This is up from a rate of about 3 kilograms (about 6.6 pounds) a month during the recession.
Enriched uranium at 60% purity is only a short technical step from the weapons grade level of 90%.
“The Agency confirmed that, since the end of November 2023, the rate at which Iran has been producing uranium enriched to 60% U-235 at these two facilities combined has increased to approximately 9 kg per month,” the IAEA said in a statement. statement summarizing the confidential report seen by Reuters.
Iran already has enough uranium enriched to 60% purity to build three nuclear bombs, according to the IAEA.
Iran, led by President Ebrahim Raisi, has increased its uranium enrichment rate after a long slowdown. via REUTERS
The watchdog’s report came just a day after Iran said Israel would “pay the price” for an airstrike in Syria that killed a top commander.
Diplomats believe that Iran initially slowed the enrichment process starting in June because its representatives were secretly talking to the United States — negotiations that led to the release of US citizens held by Iran earlier this year.
According to the IAEA definition, about 42 kilograms of enriched uranium is enough to make a nuclear bomb.
The International Atomic Energy Agency, headed by Rafael Grossi (above), reported that production increased shortly after Thanksgiving. Reuters
The watchdog’s inspectors first noticed the processing changes at both facilities shortly after Thanksgiving, the report said.
The production surge comes at a critical time in the Middle East, which has been in conflict since Hamas’s devastating October 7 attack on Israel.
Concerns that the conflict could spread to other parts of the region were fueled earlier this week when an Israeli airstrike in Syria killed a top Iranian commander – prompting Iran to rattle its sword and warn that Israel will “pay the price.”
Centrifuge machines at the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in central Iran. AP The increase in enrichment comes at a dangerous time for the Middle East, given the Israel-Hamas war that has left tens of thousands dead. AFP via Getty Images
“This act is a sign of the Zionist regime’s frustration and weakness in the region for which it will surely pay the price,” said Iranian leader Ebrahim Raisi, according to a Reuters translation.
Iran has long been accused of supporting the Palestinian terrorist organization and other US-designated terrorist groups in the region, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen.
With Postal wire
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
