Iran on 17 April began enriching uranium up to 60%, after previously notifying the International Atomic Energy Agency of its intention to do so. Enrichment to 60% uranium-235 is being carried out in two cascades of IR-4 and IR-6 centrifuges at the Natanz facility.

While the UK remains committed to making the Iran nuclear deal a success, Tehran must stop all activity that breaches the terms of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and come back into compliance, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told Iranian President Hassan Rouhani during their telephone call yesterday. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reportedly said the Biden Administration is unwilling to compromise further on efforts to encourage Tehran to hold talks with the USA.

Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, today announced a new agreement with Tehran for a face-to-face meeting between technical experts to take place early next month. At a press conference convened at short notice and live-streamed from the IAEA's headquarters in Vienna, Grossi said the aim of the agreement is for the agency and Iran to stop "talking past each other". 

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Saeed Khatibzadeh, says "the time is not ripe" for an unofficial meeting proposed by Josep Borrell, EU foreign affairs chief and coordinator of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. His statement follows Iran's commencement last week of restrictions on some site inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Parties to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action now have three months within which to navigate the impasse created by a law passed by the Iranian parliament late last year. In a joint statement yesterday, the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran confirmed that Iran will stop the implementation of the voluntary measures as envisaged in the JCPoA from tomorrow, thus enabling the AEOI to comply with the law - Strategic Action to Cease Actions and Protect the Interests of the Iranian Nation.

The E3 - France, Germany and the UK - has welcomed the prospect of a US and Iranian return to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. The E3 foreign ministers and the US secretary of state held a virtual meeting yesterday to discuss Iran and other pressing issues. It was the second time in this format since Secretary Antony Blinken took office.

Iran has informed the International Atomic Energy Agency that it will stop implementing ‘voluntary transparency measures’ under the 2015 nuclear deal. Specifically, Tehran says it will halt snap nuclear inspections outside of its declared sites as of 23 February.

The Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran has announced plans to install 1000 new IR2M centrifuge machines at the Natanz nuclear site in the next three months, AEOI spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi told reporters gathered for Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf’s visit to the Fordow plant yesterday. According to the Fars news agency, Kamalvandi said Iran is enriching uranium using 100% indigenous technology.

Iran has no credible civilian use for uranium metal and must reverse its latest move towards increased enrichment, the foreign ministers of France, Germany and the UK - the E3 countries - said on 16 January. In response, the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran said it wanted the International Atomic Energy Agency to "avoid mentioning unnecessary details".

The International Atomic Energy Agency cannot judge whether Iran will choose to become only the second country, after North Korea, ever to deny its inspectors access to nuclear sites, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said today. Grossi was speaking in an interview with Francois Murphy, chief correspondent of Reuters in Austria, where the IAEA is headquartered. The interview was held on the first day of the Reuters Next virtual summit that is taking place until 14 January.

Iran's latest move to increase uranium enrichment poses a nuclear proliferation risk, say the foreign ministers of the UK, France and Germany - the E3 countries. Meanwhile Iran’s ambassador to international organisations in Vienna has written to the International Atomic Energy Agency, stressing the need for Israel's "prompt and unconditional" joining of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Iran intends to start enriching uranium at a purity level five times that which it agreed under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. According to Fars news agency, Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran said on 1 January: "Based on a new law passed by the Parliament, we are planning to start 20% uranium enrichment at the Fordow facility," adding that the AEOI had written to the International Atomic Energy Agency informing it of this intention.