Iran has followed through on its threat to breach a central limit of its nuclear deal with major powers, accumulating more enriched uranium than allowed under the accord, the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed on Monday.
"We can confirm that IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano has informed the Board of Governors that the Agency verified on 1 July that Iran's total enriched uranium stockpile exceeded (the deal's limit)," an IAEA spokesman said in a statement.
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An IAEA report sent to member states and obtained by Reuters put Iran's stock at above the deal's limit of 300 kilograms (660 pounds) of uranium hexafluoride.
Iran acknowledged Monday it had broken the limit set on its stockpile of low-enriched uranium by the 2015 nuclear deal, marking its first major departure from the unraveling agreement a year after the US unilaterally withdrew from the accord.
Iran had been expected for days to acknowledge it broke the limit after earlier warning it would do so. It held off on publicly making an announcement as European leaders met Friday in Vienna to discuss ways to save the accord. Iran has threatened to increase its enrichment of uranium closer to weapons-grade levels by July 7.
The announcement comes as tensions remain high between Iran and the US In recent weeks, the wider Persian Gulf has seen Iran shoot down a US military surveillance drone, mysterious attacks on oil tankers and Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen launching bomb-laden drones into Saudi Arabia.
