Iran Informs IAEA They Will Enrich Uranium to 20 Percent

Iran has informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that they intend to scale up enrichment at the Fordow underground site to include some uranium enriched to 20%. Iran did not provide a timeline for this, but did say that the increase was required by a recent parliamentary law in Iran.

The parliamentary move was meant to retaliate for the assassination of their top nuclear scientist, and called for several moves to build up the nuclear program.

Iran had been enriching uranium to 20% before the P5+1 nuclear deal, and since then had dialed it back to 3.5%. The lower enrichment level is for electricity generation at Bushehr, while fuel rods from 20% are for the Tehran Research Reactor.

The Tehran Research Reactor was built in the 1960s by the United States, and has been Iran’s  lone source of medical isotopes for nuclear medicine since then. Iran ultimately planned to replace this with the Arak Heavy Water reactor, but it is undergoing revisions under the nuclear deal.

Though 20% enrichment is a lot higher than 3.5%, it is still far below the 90% needed for weapons-grade enrichment. Iran has never attempted to go above 20%, and with the IAEA continuing to have all safeguards in place, could not do so without very quick public backlash.

Iran’s government has reiterated that these measures to pick up their nuclear program are all reversible, and to the extent they are beyond the P5+1 limits, they could be quickly brought back in line once a deal is reached to resolve existing disputes on the deal, and the sanctions relief Iran was promised under it.

Iran is hoping the nuclear deal will have new life under the Biden Administration. Indeed, the Rouhani government resisted parliament’s call for new nuclear efforts, concerned it might raise tensions on the eve of a major chance at a recovery.

Either way, the 20% enrichment is no proliferation threat, and would be used to fuel the aging US-made Tehran reactor.