Uranium particles found at undeclared site in Iran: U.N.

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Vienna, AFP: The United Nations body of nuclear weapons watchdog has said it found uranium particles at an undisclosed site in Iran. The institution has given this information in its report on Iran’s nuclear program released on Monday.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IEAA) said in its report that natural uranium particles of anthropogenic origin were detected at the said site in Iran. The agency was not informed about the site. The organization has not provided information about the site, but diplomatic sources have previously said that the agency is questioning the site of Iran, where Israel once secretly ran a nuclear program.

Sources said the samples were collected early this year from the said site located in the Turkuzabad district of Iran. The report also said that Iran is increasingly enriching uranium. Its amount of enriched uranium has reached 551 kg, while as per the 2015 agreement it cannot store more than 300 kg of enriched uranium.

The underground laboratory helps in more uranium production

Tehran, AP: Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran’s nuclear program, said on Monday that the country is now producing less enriched uranium due to the reopening of an underground laboratory. He said that at present, five kilograms less enriched uranium is being produced daily than the earlier 450 grams.

Salehi, the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, made this statement at a time when President Hassan Rouhani has also called for fundamentalists to support the country’s difficult-to-pass nuclear deal.

Rouhani said that if we are successful in saving the agreement, then the ban on the purchase and sale of weapons on Iran will end from next year. After that Iran can buy weapons from other countries and sell their weapons to other countries. The United Nations has imposed this restriction.