He said the incident happened on Sunday early morning and it did not lead to human casualties or pollution.

“The causes of the incident are being investigated and will be announced subsequently,” the spokesman told Fars News.

Last year in early July, a mysterious explosion shook the plant. Later on, Kamalvandi announced that the explosion that occurred at the Natanz nuclear facility on July 2 was an “act of sabotage.”

“Security investigations confirm the sabotage [nature] of this action and what is certain is that an explosion took place in Natanz,” he said.

The latest incident at Natanz coincided with the National Day of Nuclear Technology in Iran. On Saturday, Iran announced 133 nuclear achievements and a series of nuclear measures in what amounted to a new leap in Iran’s march toward achieving advanced, peaceful nuclear technology. At a ceremony held to commemorate the nuclear day, President Hassan Rouhani issued a presidential order instructing nuclear authorities to start using the announced achievements.

“Design, construction and commissioning of the second phase of industrial production units in Arak, design, and construction of spin test machine, construction and assembly of the first prototype of the IR9S and IR9-1B centrifuges, and design and construction of 3D laser printing of metals are some of the projects that were inaugurated today,” according to a statement issued by the Iranian presidency.

In addition, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) began injecting gas into a complete chain of 164 IR6 centrifuge machines, inaugurated a station purifying the Uranium Hexafluoride input in the Natanz enrichment facility, and operated an assembly line manufacturing new machinery at the Ahmadi Roshan nuclear facility, according to the Tasnim news agency.

As of Sunday noon, there were no further details about the Natanz incident. But an Iranian lawmaker suggested that it could be another act of sabotage.

“This incident, which occurred on the anniversary of the National Day of Nuclear Technology and during Iran’s efforts to force the West to lift sanctions, is highly suspected of being sabotage and infiltration,” Malek Shariati, spokesman for the Iranian Parliament’s Energy Committee, said on Twitter, noting that the parliament is following the matter and will make announcement after the conclusion.

The lawmaker was commenting on a tweet by Ali Samadzadeh, an Iranian expert on international affairs, in which he said that “disrupting the electrical grid of the Natanz nuclear site has been one of the methods of sabotage in this strategic facility of the country for many years, and a solution must be found to eliminate and prevent it.”

“This chronic pain should be cured,” Samadzadeh said.

However, Kamalvandi told state TV that there was no sufficient information about the incident being an act of sabotage and that further investigations are needed to determine the cause of the incident.

Natanz has been at the center of Western allegations against Iran. International inspectors have been regularly visiting the facility following the signing of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The post Iran announces ‘incident’ at Natanz nuclear plant appeared first on Iran News Daily.

Iran’s chief demand is that Tehran be permitted to export crude oil at the same levels before the U.S. reimposed sanctions.

Under the 2015 nuclear deal, officially called the JCPOA, Iran had agreed to put limits on parts of its nuclear activities in exchange for the termination of all economic and financial sanctions.

The special mechanism introduced by Europeans, known as INSTEX, only allows sale of food and medicine to Iran, items which are not subject to sanctions.

The step taken by Iran on Sunday was the second of its kind. In the first step announced on May 8, Iran announced that it will not sell its stockpile of enriched uranium enriched to 3.67 percent.

The JCPOA allowed Iran to keep 300 kilograms of uranium enriched to 3.67%. However, last Monday Iran announced that its stockpile of uranium has exceeded the 300kg limit.

Iran says it is limiting its commitments based on paragraph 36 of the nuclear deal. Paragraph 36 provided a mechanism to resolve disputes and allows one side, under certain circumstances, to stop complying with the deal if the other side is out of compliance.

“Iran increasing enrichment level to power nuclear plants”

During the presser, Kamalvandi said Iran is increasing uranium enrichment from the current 3.67% to a level that fulfills the needs of its power plants.

“This was a measure the Islamic Republic had in mind and also declared previously,” he said.

Kamalvandi also said Tehran has not yet decided on the level of enrichment for the Tehran research reactor.

The Tehran reactor is powered by nuclear fuel enriched to a purity of 20 percent.

On May 8, Iran’s Supreme National Council (SNSC) declared Tehran’s exit from “certain” obligations under the landmark agreement and gave a 60-day deadline to the remaining JCPOA signatories to protect Iran’s interests against U.S. sanctions, or it will restart enriching uranium to a higher degree.

It came exactly a year after President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the JCPOA. The exit followed by introducing the harshest ever sanctions on Tehran in a clear violation of the UN Security Council resolution 2231 and pressuring other countries to violate the same resolution by cutting economic ties with Iran.

During the press conference, Rabiei criticized the U.S. revocation of the nuclear deal, saying, “Today, all those who are adhering to world peace are concerned about the United States’ actions.”

He said the U.S. aimed to disrupt social order in Iran by exiting the JCPOA. “Therefore, our big solution is social cohesion.”

Saving JCPOA is a principle for Iran, but it depends on other sides’ actions

The government spokesman also said Iran will not remain in the nuclear agreement “at any price”.

“Today, any action we take regarding [uranium] enrichment is to save the JCPOA,” Rabiei insisted. “Saving the JCPOA is a principle for us, but it depends on the other sides’ actions.”

Araqchi said Iran has reconsidered its commitments regarding the level of uranium enrichment program and “we announce that we no longer adhere to this commitment.”

According to Araqchi, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was to send a letter to European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on Sunday to openly declare the articles of the JCPOA, to which Iran would no longer adhere.

In a post on his Twitter page on Sunday, Zarif said Iran’s steps in reducing nuclear commitments are “reversible” only if the European parties to the nuclear deal (France, Germany and Britain, also called E3) honor their commitments for trade with Iran.

60-day contingencies

“We would give another 60-day deadline, after which we will continue reducing our commitments [to the deal,” Araqchi said.

Araqchi told reporters that Tehran would continue its contacts with the European parties to the deal in order to find a solution “otherwise after 60 days we will take the third step as well.”

The remaining members of the JCPOA are the four permanent members of the UN Security Council – France, Britain, Russia and China – and Germany, commonly referred to as 4+1.

“The U.S. has withdrawn from the JCPOA and cannot use any of its mechanisms, but it can attend the P4+1 meetings on the said conditions. Our first condition is [the lifting of] oil and banking sanctions,” said Araqchi, who was a senior negotiator in the talks that led to the JCPOA.

He also said Iran had planned out 60-day contingencies for every European failure to meet Iranian demands and could potentially ultimately scrap the deal altogether.

On Trump’s repeated calls for rewriting the nuclear deal, the senior diplomat underlined that the deal would under no circumstances be renegotiated and that it should be implemented precisely as it is.

Iran able to redesign Arak reactor

The deputy foreign minister also noted that Iran was holding talks with Chinese and English officials regarding the redesign of Arak reactor, which the U.S. had originally undertaken to carry out under the JCPOA. He said those talks were proceeding for now but added that Iran has the will and technology to redesign the reactor on its own if the talks failed to produce favorable results.

The post Iran starts enriching uranium to above 3.67% appeared first on Iran News Daily.

“Previously, China and the U.S. were supposed to deal with the technical issues related to the reactor, but Britain accepted the responsibility after the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA [the official name for the 2015 nuclear deal,” he told the Young Journalists Club in an interview published on Monday.

Ali Akbar Salehi, director of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said last week that the U.S. has been replaced with Britain in redesigning the Arak reactor.

“With America’s unilateral withdrawal from the JCPOA Britain replaced the U.S. in the group tasked with redesigning the Arak heavy water reactor,” Press TV quoted Salehi as saying in an interview with the IRIB.

U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew Washington from the nuclear deal on May 8 and ordered restoration of sanctions against Iran.

‘Iran has 130 tons of heavy water’

Kamalvandi also said that Iran has 130 tons of heavy water in storage and has sold extra amount.

“In spite of current pressure, we sold a good deal of heavy water and have also found suitable markets to sell it,” he stated.

The post ‘Replacing U.S. with Britain in redesigning Arak reactor not Iran’s decision’ appeared first on Iran News Daily.

The spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) says that remaining in the JCPOA only makes sense if Iran is benefiting from the deal, otherwise it may reduce commitments to it.

The post AEOI spox says Iran might reconsider JCPOA commitments appeared first on Iran News Daily.

“We received the first batch nearly seven months ago and the second batch is about to be transferred back to Iran. Any of these batches can be used for nearly one year and therefore, we have 20 percent-fuel for the Tehran reactor for at least seven to eight years,” Behrouz Kamalvandi was quoted by Sputnik as saying.

The post Iran to receive second batch of enriched uranium appeared first on Iran News Daily.

Kamalvandi said Iran was fully prepared to resume its nuclear activities with a greater speed prior to the nuclear agreement to compensate for the time that it had put caps on its nuclear program for termination of sanctions.

“We are ready to compensate for restricted action [in nuclear program] immediately,” Kamalvandi told reporters.

On May 8, President Donald Trump officially withdrew the U.S. from the UN-endorsed nuclear agreement and reintroduced unilateral sanctions on Iran.

Iran has warned if its interests are not guaranteed under the nuclear agreement it would resume its nuclear activities with a greater speed.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Saturday that the three European signatories to the JCPOA and the EU had promised to offer a package of practical steps that would fulfill Iran’s demands, including on oil sales, payments for its oil and transportation.

The post Europe should decide on nuclear deal by end of June: Iran appeared first on Iran News Daily.

The fate of the 2015 nuclear deal is unclear after the United States withdrew from it. The other signatory nations – Russia, China, Germany, Britain and France – are trying to salvage the accord, which imposed curbs on Iran’s nuclear program in return for a lifting of economic sanctions.

Behrouz Kamalvandi, the AEOI spokesman, said in an interview with the Young Journalists’ Club published on Wednesday that nuclear work will accelerate on the orders of the Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei if the remaining parties fail to keep the agreement alive.

He did not specify what kind of new equipment might be installed at Natanz.

“Currently the Supreme Leader has ordered that the programs be carried out within the parameters of the nuclear deal,” Kamalvandi stated.

“And when he gives the order we will announce the programs for operating outside of the nuclear deal for reviving Fordow,” he added.

Ali Akbar Salehi, the AEOI chief, announced last week that Iran had begun work on a facility to construct advanced centrifuges at Natanz.

Kamalvandi accused the United States and other Western countries of applying double standards by opposing Iran’s peaceful nuclear program, while accepting the nuclear arms program of Tehran’s foe Israel.

“The West doesn’t criticize the Zionist regime and have even helped them,” Kamalvandi lamented, adding, “Without the help of the West and America this regime could never have obtained nuclear weapons.”

The post Iran says will restart enrichment at Fordow if nuclear deal falls apart appeared first on Iran News Daily.

In an interview with Xinhua published on Thursday, he said, “We are committed to our obligations and we are going to fulfill all our responsibilities.”

However, if there are any signs of infringement of the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran will consider its own options, he said.

“Something is very clear for us: as long as the other side continues to observe their responsibilities and commitments, we will, of course, respect this deal.”

“So far, the United States have tried to put pressures” on Iran, he said.

The U.S. has not respected several articles, such as article 26, 28 and 29 of the nuclear deal, he said, adding that it has contradicted its own commitments, which prevents Iran from the benefits of the removal of sanctions.

The nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was signed between Iran, the European Union, Germany and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia – in July 2015. The agreement went into effect in January 2016.

Under the deal, Iran is obliged to put restrictions on its nuclear activities in exchange for termination of economic and financial sanctions.

So far the International Atomic Energy Agency has issued nine reports each time confirming that Iran is abiding fully to the terms of the agreement.

U.S. President Donald Trump, in a statement issued on October 13, refused to certify Iran’s compliance to the nuclear deal and asked Congress to decide about the fate of the nuclear deal.

According to Reuters, Congress passed the ball back to Trump by letting the deadline on reimposing sanctions on Iran pass. Trump must decide in mid-January if he wants to continue to waive energy sanctions on Iran.

The post Iran says has right to strike back if U.S. fails to lift sanctions appeared first on Iran News Daily.

“The important point is that the spirit of the JCPOA has been definitely violated, and the CAATSA law [the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act] and the U.S. sanctions prove this,” he told IRIB in an interview published on Monday.

In August, Trump signed into law one of the most wide-ranging sanctions measures of the last five years, known as CAATSA, which targets Iran, Russia and North Korea with sanctions.

CAATSA expands U.S. sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile program and enhances the legal basis for existing sanctions against the IRGC.

CAATSA has made it very difficult for Iran to expand its banking relations with the world, said a member of Tehran’s Chamber of Commerce.

Kamalvandi also said the JCPOA Joint Commission will hold a meeting on December 13.

“The main point [to be discussed in the meeting] is economic, because banks and major corporations are afraid of establishing economic interaction with our country under the influence of the U.S. while it has been mentioned in the JCPOA that no action should be taken that prevent the Islamic Republic of Iran from enjoying removal of sanctions,” he stated.

The nuclear agreement was signed by Iran, the European Union, Germany and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia – in July 2015. It took effect in January 2016.

The U.S. under the Trump administration is the only party which has made repeated attacks against the nuclear deal. In his new Iran strategy declared on October 13, President Trump decertified the nuclear deal and asked Congress to decide about the fate of the agreement.

The U.S. administration has called for a renegotiation of the nuclear agreement, a request vehemently rejected by all other parties.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, has issued nine regular reports each time confirming Iran’s adherence to the international deal.

The post JCPOA won’t survive without sanctions removal, Iran says appeared first on Iran News Daily.