Iran Starts Advanced Centrifuges At Fordo Plant – UN Watchdog

Iran has begun to use advanced centrifuges to enrich uranium at the underground Fordo facility, according to an International Atomic Energy Agency report obtained by international media on Saturday.

The new machines mentioned in the confidential document obtained by Reuters have been the object of concern among Western states, as they make it easier for the Iranians to shift between enrichment levels.

Iran has told the IAEA it only plans to reach 20 percent enrichment with the upgraded centrifuges, below the necessary 90% needed for a nuclear weapon.

The report came amid stalled efforts by Western powers to forge an agreement with Iran that would place restrictions on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program and prevent it from being able to weaponize the material.

Iran has held direct talks with the remaining parties to the deal, and indirect talks with the US, since last April in a bid to restore the previous deal signed in 2015, but those negotiations have been at an impasse since March.