This photo released Nov 5, 2019, by the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, shows centrifuge machines in the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in central Iran. (ATOMIC ENERGY ORGANIZATION OF IRAN / AP)
TEHRAN – The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) said Iran has produced 50 kg of 20-percent enriched uranium, Press TV reported Saturday.
The 20-percent uranium enrichment process was launched as part of Iran's Strategic Action Plan to Counter Sanctions, which was approved by the Iranian parliament in December 2020.
According to the action plan, the AEOI should produce 120 kg of 20-percent enriched uranium within a year after the implementation of the action plan which began on Jan 4, said Ali-Akbar Salehi.
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Iranian authorities have said a boost in uranium enrichment, along with other measures to reduce some commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), is a reaction to the US withdrawal from the deal and the failure of European signatories to protect Iran's interests amid US energy and banking sanctions.
"If there is an agreement and America returns to the JCPOA and Iran verifies that, Tehran can instantly stop 20-pct enrichment and other expansions," Salehi noted.
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