Iran's 20% enriched uranium reserves reach 55 kilograms

The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran announced that Iran's 20 percent enriched uranium reserves have reached 55 kilograms. A spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization said that the production rate of 20 percent enriched uranium is much higher than before the JCPOA.

Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, announced on Wednesday, April 7, the enrichment level of 120 kilograms, in accordance with the “Strategic Action to Lift Sanctions” law, which was passed by the Iranian parliament last year.

Kamalvandi said that to date, 55 kilograms of 20% uranium have been produced, and Iran is almost halfway there, and with the current trend, it can reach the target in less than eight months.

Kamalvandi also added that Iran's uranium production rate is 20 percent higher than before the JCPOA.

Referring to the production of new centrifuges, the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization said that Iran's uranium production rate has increased due to the use of new generation centrifuges such as IR6, which have eight times the capacity of first-generation centrifuges.

He emphasized that the Islamic Republic of Iran is now rapidly achieving everything it wanted to restore what it had set aside because of the JCPOA, and is quickly finding itself in a better position than before the JCPOA.

Behrouz Kamalvandi's statements came a day after the Vienna meeting on the revival of the JCPOA agreement.

The Vienna meeting between Iran and the five world powers that signed the JCPOA agreement took place on Tuesday, April 6, with the aim of finding ways to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.

Reuters reported that regional countries, especially Israel and Saudi Arabia, are concerned about Iran equipping itself with nuclear weapons.

Iran's increased uranium enrichment could have both peaceful and military uses. The Islamic Republic of Iran has repeatedly emphasized that the goals of its nuclear programs are peaceful and purely research-oriented.

After the Joe Biden administration came to power in the United States, the country announced its readiness to return to the nuclear deal. However, the Biden administration conditioned the lifting of sanctions on Iran's adherence to its commitments under the deal. Iran, in turn, announced that it would stop violating its commitments only when the United States lifted sanctions first.

The 4+1 (US, Russia, China, Britain and Germany) talks with Iran are scheduled to continue in Vienna on Friday, April 9th.

Source: DW