Iran Says It Resumed 20% Uranium Enrichment at Fordow Site

DUBAI (Reuters) —
This Nov. 1, 2019 satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows the Fordow nuclear facility, just north of Qom in Iran. (Satellite image ©2019 Maxar Technologies via AP)

Iran has resumed 20% uranium enrichment at its underground Fordow nuclear facility, a government spokesman told the semi-official Mehr news agency on Monday, a level of purity that is not allowed under Tehran’s 2015 nuclear pact with six major powers.

The move is the latest of several recent Iranian breaches of the deal, which it started violating in 2019 in retaliation for Washington’s withdrawal from the agreement and the re-imposition of U.S. sanctions against Tehran.

“A few minutes ago, the process of producing 20% enriched uranium has started at the Fordow enrichment complex,” Ali Rabeie told Mehr.

On Jan. 1, the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tehran had told the watchdog it planned to resume enrichment of up to 20% at the Fordow site, which is buried inside a mountain.

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