Iran has increased its production of highly enriched uranium, according to a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The report revealed that Iran, which had previously slowed down its production earlier in the year, is now enriching uranium up to 60%, a level approaching the 90% required for weapons. This is taking place at the Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant (PFEP) in the Natanz complex and the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP). The Director General of the IAEA, Rafael Mariano Grossi, noted the reversal in Iran’s output reduction from mid-2023.
Iran has reversed a slowdown in the rate at which it is enriching uranium to up to 60% purity, close to weapons grade, returning to a rate of around 9 kg a month from the reduced rate of 3 kg, the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Tuesday.#IAEA https://t.co/PvVmdsqh79
— The Jerusalem Post (@Jerusalem_Post) December 26, 2023
The U.S. State Department expressed deep concern over the report, stating that Iran has no credible civilian justification for enrichment up to 60%. The department emphasized that Iran’s nuclear escalation is particularly troubling amid its destabilizing activities in the region, including drone attacks against U.S. personnel in Iraq, Houthi attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea, and an armed-drone attack on a chemical tanker in the Indian Ocean, Fox News Digital reports.
The IAEA inspectors verified the increased production rate, reaching about 9 kilograms per month since the end of November, up from 3 kilograms per month since June. The enrichment levels far exceed the 20% cap mandated by the 2015 nuclear deal, which Iran gradually abandoned after the U.S. withdrawal and imposition of sanctions.
Enriching uranium involves increasing the percentage of uranium-235, the isotope used in nuclear fission. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons, asserting that its nuclear program aims at peaceful purposes such as treating and preventing cancer.
The report comes two weeks after Iran’s foreign minister warned of a potential “big explosion” of conflicts in the Middle East, with Lebanon and Yemen already involved and more countries poised to join. Recent attacks, including those by Iranian-backed groups, have heightened tensions in the region, with three U.S. service members injured in Iraq on Christmas Day in an attack by Kataib Hezbollah terrorists affiliated with Iran.
