Iran has amassed even more near weapons-grade uranium, UN watchdog says

Rafael Mariano Grossi the director-general of the International Atomic Vitality Agency speaks to journalists attending a weeklong seminar at the agency in Vienna Austria Wednesday May AP Photo Jon Gambrell AP Jon Gambrell Rafael Mariano Grossi the director-general of the International Atomic Ability Agency speaks to journalists attending a weeklong seminar at the agency in Vienna Austria Wednesday May AP Photo Jon Gambrell AP Jon Gambrell VIENNA AP Iran has further increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels a confidential overview by the U N nuclear watchdog commented Saturday and called on Tehran to urgently change syllabus and comply with the agency s probe The account comes at a sensitive time as Tehran and Washington have been holding several rounds of talks in the past weeks over a feasible nuclear deal that U S President Donald Trump is trying to reach The review by the Vienna-based International Atomic Resource Agency which was seen by The Associated Press says that as of May Iran has amassed kilograms pounds of uranium enriched up to That s an increase of kilograms pounds or almost since the IAEA s last review in February The enriched material is a short technical step away from weapons-grade levels of A summary in February put this stockpile level at kilograms pounds There was no immediate comment from Tehran on the new IAEA description What does the statement say The IAEA assessment raised a stern warning saying that Iran is now the only non-nuclear-weapon state to produce such material something the agency explained was of serious concern Approximately kilograms of enriched uranium is theoretically enough to produce one atomic bomb if enriched further to according to the watchdog The IAEA overview a quarterly also estimated that as of May Iran s overall stockpile of enriched uranium which includes uranium enriched to lower levels stood at kilograms pounds That s an increase of kilograms pounds since February s summary Iran has maintained its nuclear effort is for peaceful purposes only but the IAEA chief Rafael Mariano Grossi has warned that Tehran has enough uranium enriched to near-weapons-grade levels to make several nuclear bombs if it chose to do so Iranian bureaucrats have increasingly suggested that Tehran could pursue an atomic bomb U S intelligence agencies assess that Iran has yet to begin a weapons venture but has undertaken exercises that better position it to produce a nuclear device if it chooses to do so Israel s swift reaction Israel stated Saturday s record was a clear warning sign that Iran is totally determined to complete its nuclear weapons initiative according to a message from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu s office It reported IAEA s assessment strongly reinforces what Israel has been saying for years the purpose of Iran s nuclear activity is not peaceful It also added that Iran s level of enrichment has no civilian justification whatsoever and appealed on the international district to act now to stop Iran It is rare for Netanyahu to make statements on Saturday the Jewish day of rest underlying the urgency with which he sees the matter Call for cooperation Grossi commented Saturday that he reiterates his urgent call upon Iran to cooperate fully and effectively with the IAEA s years long research into uranium traces discovered at several sites in Iran The IAEA also circulated to member states on Saturday a second -page confidential statement also seen by the AP that Grossi requested following a resolution passed by the -member IAEA Board of Governors last November In this so-called comprehensive analysis the IAEA noted that Iran s cooperation with the agency has been less than satisfactory when it comes to uranium traces discovered by IAEA inspectors at several locations in Iran that Tehran has failed to declare as nuclear sites Western functionaries suspect that the uranium traces discovered by the IAEA could provide evidence that Iran had a secret military nuclear plan until One of the sites became known publicly in after Netanyahu revealed it at the United Nations and called it a clandestine nuclear warehouse hidden at a rug-cleaning plant Iran denied this but in IAEA inspectors detected the presence of manmade uranium particles there What is the IAEA inspecting in Iran After initially blocking IAEA access inspectors were able to collect samples in from two other locations where they also detected the presence of manmade uranium particles The three locations became known as Turquzabad Varamin and Marivan A fourth undeclared location named as Lavisan-Shian is also part of the IAEA probe but IAEA inspectors never visited the site because it was razed and demolished by Iran after In Saturday s comprehensive record the IAEA says that the lack of answers and clarifications provided by Iran to questions the watchdog had regarding Lavisan-Shian Varamin and Marivan has led the agency to conclude that these three locations and other viable related locations were part of an undeclared structured nuclear project carried out by Iran until the early s and that specific programs used undeclared nuclear material What s next Saturday s comprehensive document could be a basis for practicable further policies by European nations leading to a likely escalation in tensions between Iran and the West European countries could move to trigger snap-back sanctions against Iran that were lifted under the original nuclear deal ahead of October when the deal formally expires On Thursday senior Iranian personnel dismissed speculation about an imminent nuclear deal with the United States emphasizing that any agreement must fully lift sanctions and allow the country s nuclear initiative to continue The comments came a day after Trump revealed he has stated Netanyahu to hold off on striking Iran to give the U S administration more time to push for a new deal with Tehran Trump revealed on Friday that he still thinks a deal could be completed in the not too distant future They don t want to be blown up They would rather make a deal Trump revealed of Iran He added That would be a great thing that we could have a deal without bombs being dropped all over the Middle East Associated Press writer Melanie Lidman in Dubai United Arab Emirates contributed to this assessment The Associated Press receives patronage for nuclear safeguard coverage from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Outrider Foundation The AP is solely responsible for all content Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape https apnews com projects the-new-nuclear-landscape Source