{"id":243345,"date":"2021-07-16T13:56:59","date_gmt":"2021-07-16T18:56:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=243345"},"modified":"2023-02-01T04:47:25","modified_gmt":"2023-02-01T03:47:25","slug":"iran-on-jcpoa-anniversary-negotiations-stall-and-rouhani-warns-of-90-percent-enrichment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/ebrahim-raisi\/iran-on-jcpoa-anniversary-negotiations-stall-and-rouhani-warns-of-90-percent-enrichment\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran: On JCPOA Anniversary, Negotiations Stall and Rouhani Warns Of 90 Percent Enrichment"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Iran-nuclear\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Wednesday marked \u201cthe anniversary of the Iran nuclear deal\u201d.\u00a0Six rounds of talks\u00a0in Vienna to revive the JCPOA\u00a0have already passed<\/a>, but there has been little sign of progress toward resolution of outstanding issues, and Rob Malley, the US special envoy for Iran acknowledged that the process seems to have hit a wall, telling CNN that it is unclear when Iran will be \u201cready to go back.\u201d Other sources have stated that a seventh round of the Vienna talks will most likely take place in late September or early October, putting a much larger gap between the sixth and seventh than between any previous two\u00a0successive\u00a0rounds.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Iranian regime has continued to escalate its nuclear provocations<\/a> throughout the course of the Vienna talks, and the Rouhani administration has seemingly made a concerted effort to promote the transition to a more hardline administration. Perhaps the clearest example of this came on Wednesday when Rouhani himself boasted to state media about the potential for the Iranian regime to begin enriching uranium to 90 percent fissile purity \u2013 a level sufficient for use in a nuclear warhead.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Prior to adoption of the JCPOA, Iran had achieved 20 percent enrichment, putting itself only a fairly short technical step away from weapons-grade uranium, according to experts. Although the JCPOA mandated the liquidation of\u00a0higher-enriched stockpiles and ostensibly limited further enrichment to 3.67 percent, critics of the agreement questioned the strength of the enforcement regime and the longevity of the restrictions. The underlying concerns were reinforced after the US pulled out in 2018 and Iranian nuclear facilities proved capable of restoring their prior levels of enrichment much more quickly than anticipated by the deal\u2019s advocates.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Early in 2021, the problem was compounded by Iranian regime\u2019s announcement that it would begin enriching some uranium to the 60-percent level, further shortening the technical step needed for weapons-grade. This advancement was also arguably achieved more quickly than should have been possible if prior restrictions had had their promised effect of lengthening Iran\u2019s nuclear \u201cbreakout\u201d period to well over a year. In its latest report on the status of the JCPOA, the International Atomic Energy Agency estimated that Iran had accumulated more than 2.4 kg of 60-percent enriched uranium, as well as a similar amount of uranium metal, a substance with little to no use other than as a key component in the core of a nuclear weapon.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, Tehran has always denied intending to obtain such a weapon, even as with each successive development, it becomes more apparent that the regime is threatening its foreign adversaries with the possibility of a breakout. At times, regime officials\u2019 public statements on the topic come precariously close to acknowledging their true intentions, as when Intelligence Minister Mahmoud\u00a0Alavi\u00a0said that a fatwa by\u00a0the regime\u2019s\u00a0Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei \u201cforbids the production of nuclear weapons, but if [Western powers] push Iran in those directions, it is not Iran\u2019s fault. Those who pushed Iran in that direction will be to blame.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On Wednesday,\u00a0the regime\u2019s\u00a0President\u00a0Hassan\u00a0Rouhani used more delicate language\u00a0in order to\u00a0convey a more explicit threat, stating that Iran \u201ccan do anything in the peaceful path,\u201d including enrich uranium to 90 percent purity. Although this level is explicitly and exclusively needed for\u00a0use in a nuclear weapon, Rouhani attempted to suggest that it might one day be necessary for a reactor. In that case, he added, \u201cwe do not have any problem and we are able.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Nuclear power generation is a thin excuse for such threats, and Rouhani\u2019s words are sure to fuel criticism of Western strategies for dealing with the Iranian nuclear program.\u00a0Much of this sort of criticism was already delivered to a broad international audience on\u00a0Sunday, when\u00a0many speeches on the second day of the Free Iran World Summit focused attention on Iran\u2019s nuclear threats and the perceived deficiencies in the American and European response.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Weekly-Signe-up-logo-1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The\u00a0NCRI\u2019s\u00a0president-elect, Maryam\u00a0Rajavi<\/a>, delivered a keynote address on each of\u00a0the events\u00a0three days. On Sunday she stated that\u00a0the region\u2019s\u00a0Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had \u201clinked his and his regime\u2019s fate to the nuclear program\u201d and that \u201cKhamenei is building a bomb and will not stop.\u201d\u00a0She also advised that in dealing with that threat, Western policymakers should understand that \u201cthe mullahs only understand the language of firmness and strength.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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.@mikepompeo<\/a>: Iranians want to prosper in their faith and protect their families \u2013 this is as true in Tehran as it is in Los Angeles, Austin, Nashville or Kings Point. #FreeIran2021<\/a> https:\/\/t.co\/aUQxqYJNQa<\/a><\/p>\n

— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) July 10, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n