IAEA: Iran's enriched uranium stockpile is 16 times the permitted limit
The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency announced in his latest report that Iran's enriched uranium reserves have increased by 273 kilograms, and Tehran has not yet provided an explanation for the particles of nuclear material at the three inspected sites.
Rafael Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, has expressed concern that technical discussions between the Islamic Republic and the agency are not producing the expected results. He said that over the past months, Tehran has failed to provide the necessary explanations regarding the presence of particles of nuclear material at three inspected sites.
Grossi's latest report to the Board of Governors states that Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium has increased by 273 kilograms in the last three months, reaching 16 times the limit set in the JCPOA. Iran's stockpile is estimated at 3,241 kilograms. According to the JCPOA, this amount should be a maximum of 202 kilograms.
Iran is currently enriching uranium at three levels: 4.7%, 20%, and 60%.
Grossi said in his report that Iran probably has 2.4 kilograms of 60 percent enriched uranium. The IAEA is unable to provide an exact figure due to restrictions imposed by Tehran on inspections.
The report by the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency notes that the agency does not have access to data from its online enrichment monitors and sealed electronic devices.
Under a three-month agreement between Iran and the IAEA in March 2020, monitoring data from enrichment facilities will be recorded, but the information will not be made available to the IAEA until an agreement is reached on the JCPOA. The agreement was recently extended for another month, and the IAEA has placed nearly 2,000 seals on the devices so that inspectors can access them remotely.
A week ago, Rafael Grossi said in an interview with the Financial Times: "Currently, the level of uranium enrichment in Iran is at a level that only countries that manufacture bombs can reach." Emphasizing Iran's right to have a nuclear program, he added that the level of conventional and commercial enrichment is two to three percent.
This is the first time in recent months that Grossi has expressed concern about the Islamic Republic's approach to the military use of uranium. In an interview with the Japanese newspaper NIKKEI Asia in mid-March, he said: "It is clear that ensuring the civilian use of Iran's activities in this situation requires serious inspections."
Source: DW
