Iranian Parliament Supports AEOI’s Measures against US Sanctions

“We, as parliament representatives, support the AEOI’ recent measures in compliance with the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) approvals and lowering of the level of its nuclear undertakings within the framework of the (2015) nuclear deal and removal of certain restrictions on the country’s nuclear industry, including quadrupling production of enriched uranium and stopping restrictions on heavy water and enriched uranium reserves,” the statement said.

The statement was issued after AEOI Spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi announced that Iran had quadrupled the production rate of uranium enriched to 3.67% level of purity, adding that the country would exceed the stockpiling cap of 300 kilograms of the nuclear fuel within the next couple of weeks.

Kamalvandi, addressing reporters at Natanz nuclear facility on Monday, said that the AEOI had increased by fourfold the production rate of uranium enriched to 3.67% just few weeks after the country officially stopped implementing some of its commitments under an international nuclear accord.

“This issue does not mean an increase in enrichment level or an increase in centrifuge machines or a change in the type of centrifuges, but the production capacity of these 3.67% enriched uranium will be quadrupled,” Kamalvandi said.

He added that Iran had informed the International Atomic Energy Organization (IAEA) of this issue.

Kamalvandi said the production capacity for 3.67% enriched uranium could be increased using the existing number of centrifuges. So, he added, Iran would exceed the cap of 300 kilograms of low-enriched uranium in the near future.

He noted that the increase in production was a message to other signatories to the nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to tell them they must take necessary measures asked by Iran when it announced downgrading of its commitments.

“We will reach the cap of 300 kilograms within a few weeks. Our technical requirements and decisions by senior (Iranian) officials will determine our next measures,” the AEOI spokesman said.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Kamalvandi emphasized that Iran had presently no plan to stop implementing the Additional Protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and is operating within the framework of the Additional Protocol and the Safeguards Agreement with the IAEA, but will notify the UN nuclear agency if it makes such a decision.

“For the time being, we have notified the IAEA that we are planning to raise the uranium enrichment capacity to 272,000SWU (separative work units) within a period of 15 years,” the Iranian official noted.

On the first anniversary of the US withdrawal from the nuclear deal, Iran announced that it would suspend the implementation of some of its commitments under the deal, announcing that it would stop exporting excess uranium and heavy water, setting a 60-day deadline for the five remaining parties to the deal to take practical measures towards ensuring its interests in the face of the American sanctions.