VIENNA: Iran has continued enriching uranium well over the limits laid down in the ailing 2015 deal with world powers, the UN nuclear watchdog said Wednesday, with its stockpile now over 19 times the limit in the accord.According to an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report seen by AFP, Iran’s stockpile as of 21 August stands at an estimated 3,940 kg, up 131.6 kg from the last quarterly report.
The UN’s nuclear watchdog said Wednesday it could not guarantee the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, saying there had been “no progress” in resolving questions over the past presence of nuclear material at undeclared sites.In a report to member states, the IAEA said it was “not in a position to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful.”The IAEA’s quarterly report said Iran’s stock of uranium enriched to up to 60 percent, close to weapons-grade, has grown to well above the amount that by one definition is enough, if enriched further, for a nuclear bomb.Iran’s uranium enriched to up to 60 percent and in the form of uranium hexafluoride, the gas that centrifuges enrich, is estimated to have grown by 12.5 kg to 55.6 kg since the last quarterly International Atomic Energy Agency report issued on May 30, the IAEA report said.At the same time, as in previous quarters, the IAEA issued a second report saying Iran had still not provided credible answers on the origin of uranium particles found at three undeclared sites that appear to mainly be old and which the IAEA has been investigating for years.”The Director General is increasingly concerned that Iran has not engaged with the Agency on the outstanding safeguards issues during this reporting period and, therefore, that there has been no progress toward resolving them,” the second report said. (With AFP and Reuters)