DUBAI — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday warned that Iran would increase its enrichment of uranium this weekend to whatever level was needed beyond the cap set by the nuclear agreement, a move that could add to an escalation with the United States.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to increase enrichment above the 3.67 percent level allowed under the nuclear deal by July 7 unless it receives some relief from U.S. sanctions. European countries are struggling to meet Tehran’s demands to keep the 2015 nuclear deal alive.
“Our enrichment rate is not going to be 3.67 percent anymore,” Rouhani said. “It’s going to be as much as we want it to be.”
Rouhani’s comments, carried by the state broadcaster, came after Iran on Monday breached the 300 kilogram (660 pound) limit for low-enriched uranium allowed under the deal.
That move did not put Iran significantly closer to holding enough high-enriched uranium to produce a nuclear weapon, whereas increasing uranium enrichment levels could reduce its so-called “break out” time to make that possible.
Uranium enriched at low levels is suitable for fuel in a nuclear reactor but if it is enriched to much higher levels, around 90 percent, it can be used as fissile material in a nuclear weapon.
Iran has previously said it plans to raise enrichment to 20 percent — the level it possessed in its stockpile before the deal. That move would mean Tehran could jump to producing weapons-grade uranium more quickly.
Experts estimate that before the nuclear deal the amount of time that Iran needed to be able to have enough material for a nuclear bomb was around two or three months, with the accord increasing that time period to around a year.
Iran argues that it should no longer be bound by the limits of the deal if it does not also benefit from the sanctions relief that the 2015 agreement promises in exchange. Since withdrawing from the deal last year the United States has reimposed sanctions, which has also made it difficult for European companies to trade with Iran.
[The future of the Iranian nuclear deal could hinge on one key detail]
In the early hours of Wednesday morning President Trump tweeted that Iran had been “violating” the nuclear deal “long before I became President,” without providing any evidence for his assertions. “And now they have breached their stockpile limit,” he concluded. Not Good!”
This Jan. 15, 2011 photo, shows a part of Arak heavy water nuclear facilities, near the central city of Arak, Iran. (Mehdi Marizad/AP)
Inspectors from the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency, tasked with verifying whether Iran was sticking to the deal, had said it was compliant until Monday, when Iran said it was breaking the stockpile limit.
The unraveling of the 2015 deal comes against the backdrop of increased friction in the Persian Gulf, as analysts say that Tehran is determined to show strength in the face of increasing U.S. sanctions. Trump said he came close to carrying out strikes against Iran late last month after it shot down an American surveillance drone.
The United States has also pointed the finger at Tehran for explosions caused by limpet mines on petrochemical tankers in the Gulf of Oman, a charge Iran denies. Oil infrastructure has also been attacked in Saudi Arabia and rockets have been fired at U.S. bases in Iraq, where Iran backs numerous Shiite militias.
Rouhani said the position of the United States with regards to the nuclear deal was contradictory. Trump repeatedly criticized the nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, describing it as “bad” and “rotten” before withdrawing from it last year, but U.S. officials have since criticized Iran for reducing its commitments under it.
“It’s interesting that until today the U.S. was referring to the JCPOA as a bad agreement, but now that Iran has decided to distance itself from this ‘bad agreement’ their shouts and cries are spread all over the world,” Rouhani said.
As sanctions cripple its economy, Iran took the largely symbolic step of crossing the 300 kilogram threshold on Monday. Holding to its threat of increasing enrichment levels of uranium to beyond 3.67 percent would be seen as a much more serious breach of the deal, and one that could finally kill it by triggering Europe to reimpose its own sanctions.
Before the nuclear deal, Iran had been building a heavy water reactor at Arak which experts deemed a high proliferation risk that could give Iran the capacity to produce weapons-grade plutonium. The nuclear deal required Iran redesign the plant and pour concrete into the pipes of the reactor’s calandria, or core. “If you don’t comply with your commitments, the reactor will return to its previous situation,” Rouhani said.
The nuclear deal “is either good or bad,” said Rouhani. “If its good, everyone should comply to their commitments,” he said. “Comparing your level of commitment to ours, how do you even allow yourselves to object?”
In an effort to keep Iran in the deal, European countries have attempted to set up a trading system that would shield European companies from U.S. sanctions when trading with Iran. But Iran has said the Instex trading system falls short of their expectations, which include being able to sell oil. Washington has threatened any country buying Iranian oil with sanctions.
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