IAEA report: Iran makes good on threat and expands uranium enrichment

Following a resolution by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) against Iran, Tehran is significantly pushing ahead with the expansion of its uranium facilities. As the IAEA announced in Vienna, Iran has put additional powerful centrifuges into operation for the enrichment of uranium.

The Islamic Republic has also announced the installation of many more powerful centrifuges. Around 350 of these new machines have already been installed in an underground facility in Fordow, and 350 more are in the works, according to an IAEA report.

Last week, the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) passed a resolution demanding that Tehran, after years of delaying, finally cooperate with IAEA inspectors to clarify open questions about suspected secret nuclear activities in the past. Germany, France and Great Britain indirectly threatened to involve the UN Security Council if Iran did not provide answers. Iran’s government then threatened that the resolution would be answered with a “proportionate, effective and immediate response”.

Washington warns Tehran

The US State Department reacted sharply to the latest Iranian measures described by the IAEA. “The steps described in the report further undermine Iran’s claim that its nuclear program is exclusively peaceful,” said ministry spokesman Matthew Miller on Thursday. The United States would “respond accordingly” if Iran implements its announcements.

Officially, Iran does not enrich uranium for nuclear weapons. However, the country produces material that is almost suitable for weapons, with a purity level that far exceeds the requirements for nuclear fuel or scientific purposes. In 2015, Iran agreed to severely restrict its nuclear program. In return, Western states promised to lift sanctions. But then-US President Donald Trump soon terminated this pact. Iran then restarted its uranium facilities.