IAEA chides Iran over ‘undeclared change’ at facilities

Agencies | Vienna                                        

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com  

The UN nuclear watchdog criticised Iran yesterday for making an undeclared change to the interconnection between the two clusters of advanced machines enriching uranium to up to 60 percent purity, close to weapons grade, at its Fordow plant.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) found the change during an unannounced inspection on Jan. 21 at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP), a site dug into a mountain where inspectors are stepping up checks after Iran said it would dramatically expand enrichment.

Fordow is so sensitive that the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major powers banned enrichment there. Since the US pulled out of the deal in 2018 and re-imposed sanctions against Iran, Tehran has breached many of the deal’s restrictions on its nuclear activities.

In a confidential report to member states seen by Reuters, the IAEA did not say how the interconnection between the two cascades of IR-6 centrifuges had been changed except that “they were interconnected in a way that was substantially different from the mode of operation declared by Iran (to the IAEA).”

In a public statement summarising that confidential report, the IAEA said its chief Rafael Grossi “is concerned that Iran implemented a substantial change in the design information of FFEP in relation to the production of high-enriched uranium without informing the Agency in advance.”

“This is inconsistent with Iran’s obligations under its Safeguards Agreement and undermines the Agency’s ability to adjust the safeguards approach for FFEP and implement effective safeguards measures at this facility.”