Report: Iran added to uranium stocks
Chief inspector plans weekend talks
Iran sharply raised stocks of highly-enriched uranium and continued to stonewall inspectors, the global atomic watchdog said, as its chief prepares to fly to Tehran for talks that might help revive the 2015 pact that had reined in the country’s nuclear program.
The developments were detailed in the latest International Atomic Energy Agency report circulated among officials on Thursday and seen by reporters.
“The agency’s verification and monitoring activities have been seriously affected as a result of Iran’s decision to stop the implementation of its nuclear related commitments under the [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action],” read the 14-page document, referring to the accords between the country and world powers.
Atomic agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi travels to meet Iranian leaders Saturday. He’ll discuss their demands that his agency end its investigation into Iran’s past nuclear activities as a condition for resurrecting the accord. It collapsed after the Trump administration walked away in 2018 and reimposed sanctions.
Grossi said Wednesday that he’s “optimistic” his inspectors can find a solution that preserves his agency’s independence while advancing the possibility of a broader deal.
Negotiations in Vienna have continued for more than 10 months. But in Washington and European capitals, officials are insisting an agreement must be wrapped up in days.
The agency’s report revealed the extent of Iran’s nuclear escalation since the U.S. exit.
Its store of uranium enriched to 60% levels increased 83% to 73.2 pounds, the agency said. That purity of uranium is technically indistinguishable from the material needed to make nuclear weapons, with as little as 2o to 3o pounds of the highly-enriched metal needed to manufacture a crude device. Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful, civilian use but fears in the West that it could try to build a weapon drove diplomacy leading up to the 2015 accord.
Reviving the seven-yearold landmark nuclear agreement with Iran would mean relief for global energy markets. Oil has surged to $116 a barrel amid Russia’s war on Ukraine and the reluctance of other oil-producing nations to significantly increase production.
Traders have been expecting a return of Iranian barrels to global markets this year. The Persian Gulf nation, which holds the world’s No. 2 natural gas and No. 4 crude reserves, could probably raise exports by around 1 million barrels a day within months of any deal, according to traders.
The original accord gave the atomic agency monitors unprecedented supervision over Iranian nuclear facilities, which they partially lost after the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from the agreement.
Other issues to have halted talks in the Austrian capital include an Iranian insistence that the Biden administration guarantee future U.S. governments won’t again leave the pact, and how to roll back Tehran’s nuclear advancements.
The agency has been probing the source of uranium particles detected at several undeclared locations in Iran. European and U.S. diplomats have previously threatened to censure Tehran over its lack of cooperation with the watchdog, which convenes its next board meeting on March 7.