Iran's nuclear chief on Wednesday inaugurated a new nuclear enrichment facility geared toward producing centrifuges that Tehran says will operate within the limits of the 2015 international nuclear agreement.
Iranian state television broadcast an interview with Iranian Atomic Energy Organization head Ali Akbar Salehi showcasing the facility at the Natanz uranium enrichment center.
In the interview, Salehi indicated that construction on the facility began before the 2015 deal was reached. He said he hopes the first centrifuges – known as old-generation centrifuges – will roll out in a month's time.
Meanwhile, in a gesture likely directed at the Trump administration's recent withdrawal from the nuclear deal, Iran on Tuesday informed the U.N. nuclear watchdog that it plans to increase its nuclear enrichment capacity, but remain within the provisions of the accord.
The European and other nations involved in the accord, which lifted crippling economic sanctions in exchange for Iran agreeing to curbs on its uranium enrichment program, are now trying to salvage it. Many companies that rushed to make billion-dollar deals with Iran when the sanctions were lifted are now backing out for fear of being targeted by the United States, which plans to reimpose sanctions on Iran and on international companies dealing with Iran.
Natanz, 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of Tehran, houses underground facilities protected from airstrikes by 7.6 meters (25 feet) of concrete.
Salehi's choice of Natanz during his speech came as no surprise. The facility has been a point of contention between Iran and the West since its existence was revealed by an Iranian exile group in 2002. While Tehran has long maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, Western nations fear Natanz was a means for Iran to enrich enough uranium to produce atomic weapons.
At the height of the West's fears over Iran's program, the Stuxnet computer virus, widely believed to be a joint American and Israeli endeavor, caused thousands of centrifuges at Natanz to spin themselves to destruction.
Under the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran agreed to store its excess centrifuges at Natanz under constant surveillance by the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran can use 5,060 older-model centrifuges at Natanz, but only to enrich uranium up to 3.67%. Natanz was designed to have as many as 50,000 centrifuges operating there.
In Wednesday's interview, Salehi said mass-production for new-generation centrifuges will take years to be fully operational.
"Every new generation of centrifuges needs eight to 10 years for testing," he said.
That low-level enrichment means the uranium can be used to fuel a civilian reactor but is far below the 90% needed to produce a weapon. According to the deal, Iran also can possess no more than 300 kilograms (660 pounds) of enriched uranium. This compares to the 100,000 kilograms (220,460 pounds) of higher-enriched uranium it once had.
Iran this week told the IAEA it has a "tentative schedule" to start production of UF6, uranium hexafluoride. This is a gas spun by centrifuges to make enriched uranium that can be used in nuclear weapons and atomic reactor fuel. This work is also restricted under the nuclear deal.
On Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Washington was aware of reports that Iran plans to increase its uranium enrichment capacity and that the U.S. would not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.
"We're watching reports that Iran plans to increase its enrichment capacity. We won't allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon," Pompeo tweeted. "Iran is aware of our resolve."
Earlier Wednesday, Iranian Ambassador to the IAEA Reza Najafi told journalists in Vienna that Iran had given European nations "a few weeks" to come up with ways to protect the deal from the U.S. pullout.
"These are the preparatory works for a possible scenario if in an unfortunate situation the (nuclear deal) fails then Iran can restart its activities without any limits," Najafi said.
"What I can say is right now the negotiations at the expert level are continuing and we hope that it could reach some conclusion. Until then, we continue to exercise the most restraint, but it is not (an) endless process."
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warned Iran against restarting higher enrichment of uranium.
"It is always dangerous to flirt with the red lines," he said.
