Tehran resumes nuclear production at the Fordo plant

Today the uranium gas injection will be resumed in 1044 first-generation IR-1 centrifuges. For the Islamic Republic it is the fourth step in the direction of a disengagement from the 2015 Vienna agreement. Rouhani: "reversible" decision if Europe compensates for the effect of US sanctions.

Tehran (AsiaNews / Agencies) - From today Tehran resumes injecting uranium gas into centrifuges at the Fordo underground enrichment plant, failing to meet another of the commitments provided for in the 2015 nuclear agreement already disavowed by the United States. This was announced yesterday by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who however added that the decision is "reversible" if the world powers maintain faith in the pact.

It is the fourth step taken by the Islamic Republic since last July in the development of nuclear technology, in response to Washington's unilateral withdrawal and the introduction of the most severe sanctions in history. Enriched uranium can be used both to produce fuel for reactors, and for the production of nuclear weapons.

Tehran will therefore begin to inject uranium gas into the 1044 first-generation centrifuges (IR-1) of the Fordo plant, whose use was frozen after the Vienna agreement with the 5 + 1 countries (China, Russia, United States , Great Britain, France and Germany). The process is used for the production of enriched uranium in the form of an isotope 235 and the activities will be supervised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The European Union and Russia immediately expressed their concern about Tehran's decision. Kremlin spokesman Dimitri Peskov added that "nothing good" will come from the final failure of the nuclear agreement.

The Fordo site, which according to the agreements of 2015 should have become a research center, is located within the mountains overlooking Qom and about 200 km south of Tehran. "From tomorrow - stressed Rouhani - we will take a new step, the fourth" in a perspective of disengagement from the points envisaged by the agreement and "I will give an order to resume the gas injection" from the site of Fordo. "Our European partners - concluded the president - must compensate for the effect of US sanctions" and if they do so, today's decision will be "reversible".