VIENNA — Iran has further increased its reservations of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels, according to a confidential report by the United Nations nuclear watchdog.
The document indicates that Iran now has 142.1 kilograms (313.2 pounds) of uranium enriched to 60%, an increase of 20.6 kilograms (45.4 pounds) since the last report in February. Uranium enriched at 60% purity is a small technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.
According to the report, Iran’s total reserves of enriched uranium amount to 6,201.3 kilograms (13,671.5 pounds), representing an increase of 675.8 kilograms (1,489.8 pounds) since the last report from the International Energy Agency. Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
In its current report, the IAEA also said that Tehran has not reconsidered the agency’s September 2023 decision to ban more experienced nuclear inspectors from monitoring its nuclear program, but added that it expected Iran “to do so in the context of ongoing consultations between the Agency and Iran.”
The IAEA added that the deaths of Iran’s president and foreign minister in a helicopter crash have caused a pause in the UN nuclear watchdog’s talks with Tehran on improving cooperation.
In its current report, the agency indicated that Iran suggested in a letter dated May 21 that discussions related to cooperation between the IAEA and Iran “continue in Tehran ‘at an appropriate date to be mutually agreed upon.'”
Iran claims its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but IAEA chief Rafael Mariano Grossi has already warned that Tehran has enough uranium enriched to levels close to weapons grade to make “several” nuclear bombs if it so chooses. He has acknowledged that the agency cannot guarantee that any of Iran’s centrifuges have been removed for clandestine enrichment.
Source: With information from AP
