Iran has again increased its stockpile of 60-percent enriched uranium, according to the head of the United Nation’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi.
The IAEA chief told the nuclear watchdog’s Board of Governors on Monday at its meeting in Vienna that Iran’s sharp increase of highly enriched uranium is cause for serious concern.
As of February 8, “Iran’s stockpile of uranium enriched up to 60 percent U 235 has increased to 275 kg, up from 182 kg in the past quarter,” Grossi said.
“Iran is the only non-nuclear weapon state enriching to this level, causing me serious concern,” Grossi said in a statement.
The addition of 92.5 kg of highly enriched uranium over the past quarter is a sharp rise over the previous increase announced in December.
Iran now has enough 60 percent enriched uranium – which can be quickly increased to the weapons-grade 90 percent enrichment — to create six nuclear weapons, the IAEA warned last week.
“The significantly increased production and accumulation of high enriched uranium by Iran, the only non-nuclear weapon state to produce such nuclear material, is of serious concern,” the IAEA noted in its report.
Iran has increased its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium by 50 percent in 15 weeks, The Wall Street Journal reported last week. It would be a matter of days for Tehran to convert the stockpile to weapons-grade enriched uranium.
The Islamic Republic is currently producing enough fissile material in a single month for one nuclear weapon, WSJ noted.
Israel warned last month that a military option may soon be necessary to stop Iran from achieving a nuclear breakout.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar told the Politico news outlet in an interview in Brussels, “We don’t have much time. I think that in order to stop a nuclear Iranian program before it will be weaponized, a reliable military option should be on the table.”
