Iran Increases Stockpile of Near-Weapons Grade Uranium

Photo Credit: Tasnim News Agency

IR6 uranium enrichment centrifuges at the underground Fordow nuclear facility in Iran.

Iran is increasing its stockpile of near-weapons grade enriched uranium, according to a report by the United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) seen Tuesday by the Associated Press.

According to the report, Iran possesses 182.3 kilograms (401.9 pounds) of uranium enriched up to 60 percent as of October 26, 2024.

This represents an increase of 17.6 kilograms (38.8 pounds) since the last report in August.

Uranium must be enriched to 90 percent purity for use in a nuclear weapon, but the jump from 60 to 90 percent is a just a short, technical step.

In the same report, the IAEA estimated that as of Oct. 26, Iran’s overall stockpile of enriched uranium stands at 6,604.4 kilograms (14,560 pounds), an increase of 852.6 kilograms (1,879.6 pounds) since August.

Around 42 kilograms (92.5 pounds) of 60 percent-enriched uranium – boosted to 90 percent purity – is required to produce one nuclear weapon, according to the IAEA.

Last week Iran told IAEA chief Rafael Grossi during his visit to Tehran, “The possibility of Iran not further expanding its stockpile of uranium enriched up to 60 percent U-235 was discussed, including technical verification measures necessary for the Agency to confirm this, if implemented.”

The day after Grossi left Iran, IAEA inspectors verified that Iran had begun “implementation of preparatory measures aimed at stopping the increase of its stockpile of uranium enriched up to 60 percent U-235” at the Fordow and Natanz underground nuclear plants.

However, it is a very simple matter for Iran to halt or even reverse those measures, which it may do in response to any resolution of censure by the agency.

Previous IAEA reports have warned that Iran already has enough near-weapons grade-enriched uranium to produce “several” nuclear weapons, and there is no guarantee that Tehran is not secretly enriching more.

The IAEA Board of Governors is set to vote Thursday in Vienna on a resolution censuring Tehran for its lack of cooperation with the nuclear watchdog agency.

According to the report there is no progress on re-installing monitoring equipment (cameras, etc) that were removed in June 2022. In September 2023, Tehran also barred the IAEA’s most experienced inspectors.

At this point, the nuclear watchdog agency has no access to data on Iranian nuclear development activity.

Israel has repeatedly warned that it will not allow Iran to achieve creation of a nuclear weapon – a pledge also made by the Trump and Biden administrations.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed that an Israeli strike against Iran last month (in response to an earlier attack on Israel by Tehran) hit “a specific component in their nuclear program” at the Taleghan 2 facility in the Parchin military complex. “It’s not a secret; it has been published,” Netanyahu confirmed in a speech to the Knesset on Tuesday. “There is a specific component in their nuclear program that was hit.”

A US official quoted by Axios likewise confirmed the Parchin facility “conducted scientific activity that could lay the ground for the production of a weapon. It was a top-secret thing. A small part of the Iranian government knew about this, but most of the Iranian government didn’t.”

Nevertheless, Gross said Wednesday the nuclear watchdog does not consider the Parchin site to be a “nuclear facility”, adding there was no information that would “confirm presence of nuclear material” in Parchin.

“As far as the IAEA is concerned, we do not see this as a nuclear facility,” Gross said. “We don’t have any fact that can substantiate this. Maybe they do, but we don’t. So, I cannot say there was activity because we don’t have any information that would substantiate this idea.”