Iran "
will begin to enrich uranium to 60%,
" the official Irna agency announced on Tuesday (April 13th), two days after "
sabotage
" of its Natanz enrichment plant, which Tehran blames on Israel.
Abbas Araghchi, Deputy Foreign Minister, made the announcement "
in a letter to Rafael Grossi
", the executive director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), who briefed member states.
France condemned this announcement, which represents "
a serious development
" requiring "
a coordinated response
" from France, Germany and the United Kingdom with the USA, the Russians and the Chinese, said the French presidency, specifying that this coordination was "
in progress
”.
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The Islamic Republic is currently enriching uranium to 20% in isotope 235, well beyond the limit of 3.67% set by the international Iranian nuclear agreement concluded in Vienna in 2015. Enrichment to 60% on would be able to quickly go to the 90% and more, necessary for the use of this ore for military purposes.
Irna does not specify when these activities would begin, which would mark a further step in the violation of commitments made by Iran to the international community in 2015 to limit its nuclear program.
But according to PressTV, a state television news channel in English, this measure will be implemented on Wednesday.
The Islamic Republic has always denied wanting to acquire nuclear weapons, arguing a moral and religious ban.
Discussions in Vienna postponed
In his letter to Rafel Grossi, Abbas Araghchi also declares that "
1000 additional centrifuges with a capacity 50% higher will be added to the machines present at Natanz, in addition to the replacement of the damaged machines
" by the explosion which occurred on Sunday in this nuclear complex of center of Iran, adds Irna without giving more details.
The announcements come hours after a meeting in Tehran between Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.
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Earlier, state television announced that Abbas Araghchi had left Tehran to attend a meeting in Vienna to take stock of the ongoing discussions aimed at reintegrating the United States into the nuclear deal. 2015 and to bring Tehran back to the strict application of the text, in exchange for the lifting of the sanctions imposed by Washington against the Islamic Republic since 2018. But the discussions in Vienna, which were to resume Wednesday, were postponed until Thursday, announced the Russian Ambassador to International Organizations Mikhail Ulyanov.
"
The meeting of the joint committee
", which brings together the states parties to the agreement (Germany, France, United Kingdom, China, Russia and Iran), under the auspices of the EU, "
will be held on April 15
" in the Austrian capital, he wrote on Twitter.
"
Iran's latest nuclear measures, in particular 60% uranium enrichment, will obviously be discussed,
" he added.
