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Iran says it exceeds enriched uranium stockpile limit

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TEHRAN: Iran said on Monday it had exceeded a limit on its enriched uranium reserves under a 2015 nuclear deal that has edged towards collapse as the US imposes a “maximum pressure” campaign.


Russia voiced regret but said it was a consequence of the US pressure, while Britain urged Iran “to avoid any further steps away” from the landmark deal.


“Iran has crossed the 300-kg limit based on its plan” announced in May, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told semi-official news agency Isna.


The United States withdrew from the nuclear deal last year and reimposed biting sanctions on Iran’s crucial oil exports and financial transactions as well as other sectors.


Tehran, which has sought to pressure the remaining parties to save the deal, on May 8 announced it would no longer respect the limit set on its enriched uranium and heavy water stockpiles.


In his comments published on Monday, Zarif said Iran had set out its intentions “very clearly” in May.


The International Atomic Energy Agency on Monday confirmed Iran had exceeded the limit that the deal had imposed on its stockpile of low-enriched uranium (LEU). The IAEA “verified on July 1 that Iran’s total enriched uranium stockpile exceeded 300 kg”, a spokesperson said. A diplomat in Vienna, where the UN’s nuclear watchdog is based, said that Iran had exceeded the limit by 2 kg.


Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, said Iran’s move was a cause for “regret” but also “a natural consequence of recent events” and a result of the “unprecedented pressure” imposed by the US. — AFP


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