According to Iranian News Television, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Araghi said on the 13th that Iran has informed the International Atomic Energy Agency that it plans to start producing 60% enriched uranium from the 14th.
Araghi also said that for the Natanz nuclear facility where the power system failed on the 11th, Iran will replace the damaged centrifuges as soon as possible, and add 1,000 centrifuges with a 50% increase in concentration.
On the same day, Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif also stated during a joint press conference with visiting Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov that Iran will operate a more advanced centrifuge at the Natanz nuclear facility for uranium enrichment activities.
At the beginning of January this year, Iran announced that it had begun to implement measures to increase the abundance of enriched uranium to 20% at the Fordo nuclear facility.
In July 2015, Iran reached an Iran nuclear agreement with the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany. According to the agreement, Iran promised to limit its nuclear program and the abundance of enriched uranium shall not exceed 3.67% in exchange for the lifting of sanctions against Iran by the international community.
In May 2018, the US government unilaterally withdrew from the Iran nuclear agreement, and subsequently restarted and added a series of sanctions against Iran. Since May 2019, Iran has gradually suspended the implementation of certain provisions of the Iran nuclear agreement, but promised that the measures taken are “reversible.”