Iran injects gas into new centrifuges ahead of nuke talks with European powers
UK, France and Germany to participate in talks with Tehran despite backing IAEA censure, as Islamic Republic seen willing to engage with West ahead of Trump taking office
Iran has begun inserting uranium gas into newly activated advanced centrifuges, the country’s top nuclear official said Thursday, ahead of planned talks with European powers aimed at curbing its enrichment activities and stepping up inspections.
The announcement by Iran Atomic Energy Agency head Mohammad Eslami came after Britain, France, and Germany joined with the United States to have Tehran censured by the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors last week for continuing to ramp up uranium processing while failing to cooperate with inspectors.
The insertion of uranium gas is a necessary step to activate the centrifuges, which work by rapidly spinning the element to increase the proportion of the fissile isotope U-235.
In a defiant response to the UN watchdog’s resolution, Tehran announced this week it was activating “new and advanced centrifuges,” further advancing its nuclear program, which already enriches uranium at near-weapons-grade levels and boasts a stockpile enough for several nuclear bombs if it chooses to pursue them.
The IAEA said in June that Iran had begun spinning new centrifuges, and planned to deploy more.
Despite last week’s resolution, Iranian officials have also signaled a willingness to engage with the West ahead of the return of US President-elect Donald Trump, whose last administration pursued a policy of “maximum pressure” against the Islamic Republic.
Iranian diplomat Majid Takht-Ravanchi, who serves as the political deputy to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, is scheduled to represent Iran in talks Friday with Britain, France, and Germany.
He will meet beforehand with Enrique Mora, deputy secretary general of the European Union’s foreign affairs arm, according to the IRNA state news agency.
Last week’s resolution by the 35-nation IAEA Board of Governors condemned Iran for its lack of cooperation on nuclear issues. It requires the IAEA to produce a “comprehensive and updated assessment” of Iran’s nuclear activities, which could eventually trigger a referral to the UN Security Council to consider more sanctions on Tehran.
Iran described the resolution brought by the US and its European allies as “politically motivated.”
Tehran’s readiness to sit down with the three European countries so soon after the censure comes just weeks before Trump is set to return to the White House.
During his first term, Trump focused on re-imposing heavy sanctions on Iran following the United States’ unilateral withdrawal from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal three years after it was established.
That agreement between Tehran and major powers aimed to give Iran relief from crippling Western sanctions in exchange for limiting its nuclear program to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon.
Tehran has consistently denied any intentions of pursuing atomic weapons.
In retaliation for the US withdrawal, Tehran has reduced its compliance with the deal, raising its uranium enrichment levels to 60 percent — close to the 90% required for a nuclear bomb.
Indirect talks between President Joe Biden’s administration and Tehran to try to revive the pact have failed. Trump said in his election campaign in September, “We have to make a deal because the consequences are impossible. We have to make a deal.”
For Tehran, the goal of the talks on Friday is to avoid a “double disaster” scenario, in which it would face renewed pressures from both Trump and European nations, according to political analyst Mostafa Shirmohammadi.
He noted that Iran’s support among European nations had been eroded by allegations it offered military assistance for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Iran has denied these accusations and hopes to mend relations with Europe, while also maintaining a firm stance.
‘Legal obligations’
The IAEA’s censure resolution urged Iran to “fulfill its legal obligations” under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) ratified in 1970, which requires member states to declare and maintain their nuclear materials under IAEA supervision.
In response, Foreign Minister Araghchi, who was instrumental in the nuclear negotiations in 2015, said Iran was commissioning “several thousand advanced centrifuges.”
Iran insists on its right to nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, but according to the IAEA, it is the only non-nuclear-weapon state enriching uranium to 60 percent.
Under the 2015 accord — which will expire in October 2025 — Iran’s enrichment was capped at 3.67%.
In an interview published on the eve of the talks, Araghchi warned frustration in Tehran over unmet commitments, such as lifting sanctions, was fuelling debate on whether the country should alter its nuclear policy.
“We have no intention to go further than 60 percent for the time being, and this is our determination right now,” he told Britain’s The Guardian newspaper.
But, he added, “there is this debate going on in Iran, and mostly among the elites… whether we should change our nuclear doctrine” as so far it has proven to be “insufficient in practice.”
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final authority in Iran’s decision-making, has issued a religious decree, or fatwa, prohibiting the use of atomic weapons.
Iran’s nuclear program dates back to the late 1950s when the United States, then an ally, signed a civil cooperation agreement with shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
