The UN nuclear agency has confirmed the detection in Iran of particles of uranium enriched to 83.7%, just below the 90% needed to manufacture an atomic bomb, says a report to which the AFP had access this Tuesday (28). ).
The particles were detected in samples collected in January at the Fordo plant, specified the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), confirming reports from diplomatic sources.
The IAEA asked for “clarifications” while “talks continue” to determine the origin of these particles, adds the report, which will be presented next week at the meeting of the Board of Governors of the UN nuclear agency.
Iran, which denies any intention of acquiring a nuclear weapon, indicated in a letter to the IAEA that the possible presence of this type of particle could be due to “involuntary fluctuations” during the enrichment process.
Iran denied last week that it had enriched uranium to more than 60% and guaranteed that claiming the opposite represented “a distortion of the facts”.
Negotiations to revive the deal concluded in 2015 to limit Iran’s atomic activities in exchange for lifting international sanctions are currently stalled.
These negotiations began in April 2021 in Vienna, headquarters of the IAEA, but have been interrupted since August 2022, in a context of increasing tensions.
The 2015 deal has been moribund since the United States unilaterally withdrew in 2018 under President Donald Trump.
Since then, the Islamic Republic has ignored several commitments in that agreement.
The report consulted by AFP indicates that Iran’s enriched uranium reserves amounted to 3,760.8 kg on February 12, 18 times more than the 202.8 kg authorized by the 2015 agreement.
And the enrichment process reaches increasingly high levels in relation to the ceiling of 3.67% established by the agreement. Currently, Tehran has 434.7 kg enriched at 20% and 87.5 kg at 60%.
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