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Iran Enriching At Fordow, IAEA Confirms, As Enriched Uranium Stock Grows


General view of the board of governors meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, at the International Center in Vienna, Austria, Monday, Sept. 9, 2019.
General view of the board of governors meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, at the International Center in Vienna, Austria, Monday, Sept. 9, 2019.

Iran has begun enriching uranium at its underground Fordow site in the latest breach of its deal with major powers, the U.N. nuclear watchdog confirmed on Monday, adding that Tehran's enriched uranium stock has continued to grow.

Iran is breaching the deal's limits on its nuclear activities step by step in response to Washington's withdrawal from the accord last year and its renewed sanctions on Tehran. Tehran says it can quickly undo those breaches if Washington lifts its sanctions.

After the withdrawal of the United States from the 2015 nuclear deal known as JCPOA and reimposition of economic sanctions, Iran demanded Europe to bypass the sanctions and maintain trade relation.

Europe has been hesitant to engage in any arrangement contrary to American sanctions. Iran decided in May to gradually reduce treaty obligations under JCPOA.

In a quarterly report, the International Atomic Energy Agency policing the deal said Iran's reserve of enriched uranium and the purity to which it refines uranium remain above the deal's limits. Tehran is also enriching with more advanced centrifuges and enriching at Fordow, which the deal forbids.

Reporting by Reuters

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