Head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization: Two Thousand Centrifuges Have Been Dismantled

The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization stated regarding the number of dismantled centrifuges that "I do not have the exact number... but perhaps two thousand of them have been removed." Previously, the U.S. had announced this number to be five thousand. According to Iranian news agencies, Ali Akbar Salehi said in an interview with the Arabic-language network "Al-Alam" on Monday, December 30, "I do not have the exact number now, but the number of active centrifuges was around 9,000 and some; let's assume there were ten thousand active centrifuges; I believe that out of these ten thousand, six thousand will remain. Four thousand need to be removed. I think perhaps two thousand of these four thousand have been dismantled." Mr. Salehi's remarks come as Stephen Mull, the U.S. coordinator for the JCPOA, previously stated: "Iran has removed over five thousand of its centrifuges from access and is likely to collect the remaining devices in the coming days." According to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which was reached on July 14 in Vienna, Tehran agreed that its enrichment capacity at the Natanz facility would be a maximum of 5,060 centrifuges for the next ten years. Mr. Salehi added that after the resolution was passed in the IAEA Board of Governors, Iran immediately began dismantling active centrifuges in Natanz and Fordow. He added, "We hope that within one or two weeks at most, these centrifuges will be completely dismantled." The IAEA Board of Governors passed a resolution on December 24 that closes the case regarding Iran's alleged efforts to build a nuclear weapon. The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization stated that the West insists that additional heavy water be sold before the implementation of the JCPOA, which he said is "unconventional and unacceptable." However, Mr. Salehi added, "As long as there is a buyer and they pay for it, Iran is ready to send the additional heavy water." Abbas Araghchi, head of the JCPOA Implementation Follow-up Headquarters, said on December 24 on Iranian state television that one of Iran's most important commitments was related to the Arak heavy water facility and the reserves of enriched uranium; "Now that the PMD (Possible Military Dimensions) has been closed, we will start these two key tasks." The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization further stated that Iran needs cooperation from other countries to finance new nuclear projects. According to Mr. Salehi, Russia, South Korea, Japan, and European countries have expressed readiness to cooperate with Iran. He added, "Some countries have announced their readiness to finance nuclear projects, and those countries that are proactive in this regard will have priority, and China has announced this readiness."