60% uranium enrichment is in response to Israeli terrorist act, Iran
Tehran … News Time
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has said the decision to increase uranium enrichment to 60 percent is a response to Israel’s “nuclear terrorism” over Natanz’s nuclear facility. According to the report, he addressed the Jewish state and said that Tehran would launch modern centrifuges and now produce better uranium, which is “an answer to Israel’s notorious role.” “What Israel did was nuclear terrorism, and what we are doing is legal,” he said. Iran’s regional rival, Saudi Arabia, also expressed concern and called on Tehran to reduce tensions. Earlier, Iran blamed Israel for sabotaging its key nuclear facility, Natanz, which damaged uranium enrichment centrifuges, and vowed to retaliate.
Iranian Foreign Minister Jawad Zarif has warned US President Joe Biden that the situation could only be remedied by lifting sanctions imposed by former US President Donald Trump. “There is no alternative and there is not much time,” he said. Earlier, Zarif told a joint news conference with his Russian counterpart in Tehran that Israel had made a “big mistake” if it believed the attack would weaken Iran’s nuclear program. The White House said in a statement that the United States had not been involved in Sunday’s attack and had not commented on the motive for the attack. A Foreign Ministry spokesman also acknowledged that Iran’s first-generation uranium enrichment workhorse IR-1 centrifuges had been damaged in the attack, but did not elaborate.
It is to be noted that more details could not be revealed about the incident that took place at the nuclear facility on Sunday morning, which was initially declared a blackout due to the power supply grid at the site. Several Israeli media outlets reported that a cyber attack had darkened Natanz and damaged a highly sensitive facility. The 2015 nuclear deal allows Iran to enrich uranium in a plant with only 5,060 IR-1 machines, but Iran has begun enriching Natanz with advanced centrifuges, including IR-2M. The incident comes at a time when Iran and the United States are making diplomatic efforts to restore the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which Israel opposes. Despite strong opposition from Israel, US President Joe Biden’s government wants to rejoin the agreement on Iran’s full compliance with the ban on nuclear fuel, which former President Donald Trump withdrew from the United States.
