From the Liveblog of
Monday, September 22, 2025
Iranian nuclear chief arrives in Moscow, will ink deal for construction of 8 power plants
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MOSCOW, Russia — The head of Iran’s atomic energy organisation, Mohammad Eslami, has arrived in Moscow for talks, Iranian state-run media says, as the UN considers whether to reimpose sanctions on Tehran over its nuclear program.
On Friday, the 15-member UN Security Council rejected a draft resolution to permanently lift sanctions on Tehran, a move backed by Russia and China, which oppose efforts by Britain, France, and Germany to reimpose UN sanctions.
The European nations accuse Tehran of failing to abide by a 2015 deal with world powers that aimed to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon. Iran denies having any such intention, and Russia says it supports Tehran’s right to peaceful nuclear energy.
Eslami, who is also Iran’s vice president, tells Iranian state media that bilateral cooperation agreements would be signed during his visit to Russia, including a plan to construct eight nuclear power plants as Tehran seeks to reach 20 GW of nuclear energy capacity by 2040.
“Contract negotiations have taken place, and with the signing of the agreement this week, we will enter the operational steps,” Eslami says.
Iran, which suffers from electricity shortages during high-demand months, only has one operating nuclear power plant in the southern city of Bushehr, which was built by Russia and has a capacity of around 1 GW.
The Times of Israel Community.