Iran has issued a stark warning to the US and Israel, saying Tehran could consider enriching uranium up to 90 per cent, the level required for weapons-grade capability. The warning came a day after US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was on โlife supportโ and indicated that Washington was considering restarting naval escorts through the Strait of Hormuz amid stalled negotiations.ย
โOne of Iran’s options in the event of another attack could be 90 percent enrichment. We will review it in the parliament,โ Iranian Parliamentary Commission spokesperson Ebrahim Rezaei posted on X.
Iranโs journey to enrich uranium
Iran has significantly increased its stockpile of enriched uranium in the years following the United Statesโ withdrawal from the nuclear agreement signed with Tehran during Donald Trumpโs first term as president.
A report by The New York Times stated that Iran now possesses around 11,000 kilograms, or nearly 22,000 pounds, of enriched uranium. The sharp rise has taken place over the past eight years after Washington pulled out of the 2015 nuclear accord.
Iran began enriching uranium on an industrial level in 2006, maintaining that the programme was intended for peaceful and civilian purposes. However, reports issued over the years by the United Nationsโ nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), showed a steady increase in the countryโs uranium reserves.
In 2010, Tehran announced plans to enrich uranium up to 20 per cent purity, saying the material was needed to produce fuel for a research reactor. Experts consider this level an important threshold separating civilian nuclear activity from potential military use.
According to the IAEA, Iran currently holds 440.9 kilograms, or 972 pounds, of uranium enriched to 60 per cent purity. Nuclear experts say this level is only a short technical step away from weapons-grade uranium, which is enriched to around 90 per cent.
Iran cannot be allowed to have nuclear weapons, says US
The United States has long maintained that Iran cannot be allowed to possess nuclear weapons and that not preventing Tehran from doing so may cause a threat to humanity. He said Iran can even nuke Israel and also Europe if it becomes a nuclear power.
Iranโs nuclear programme has also been a bone of contention in the peace efforts.ย
ALSO READ:ย Trump says ceasefire with Iran on ‘massive life support’, seeks ‘complete victory’