Islamic Republic Claims 'Several Thousand Advanced Centrifuges' Operational

Mohammad Eslami announced on the sidelines of today's cabinet meeting that the Islamic Republic has begun 'injecting gas into several thousand advanced centrifuges' in response to the recent resolution of the Board of Governors. According to Iranian media, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran emphasized that 'this action was executed at the moment of voting' and claimed: 'We had stated from the beginning that if the three European countries did not prefer the path of interaction and pursued confrontation and the issuance of a resolution, we would certainly take reciprocal action immediately.' According to this government official, 'several thousand advanced centrifuges' have been placed 'in operational mode' after gas injection. The Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency condemned the Islamic Republic's lack of cooperation with the Agency and its secrecy regarding Iran's nuclear activities in a resolution passed on Thursday, November 22, 2023. The resolution called on the Islamic Republic to provide credible explanations regarding 'human-origin uranium particles found at two undeclared locations in Iran' without delay and to inform the Agency of the current locations of nuclear material or contaminated equipment, as well as to provide the necessary information, documents, and responses required by the Agency and to grant access to the locations and materials needed by the Agency's inspectors. Following this condemnation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Atomic Energy Organization of the Islamic Republic issued a joint statement declaring: 'This politicized, unrealistic, and destructive approach has undermined the positive atmosphere created and the agreements resulting from it, and for this reason, an order has been issued to launch a series of new and advanced centrifuges.' In this context, the United States, France, Britain, and Germany welcomed the adoption of the IAEA Board of Governors resolution against the Islamic Republic's nuclear activities on Saturday, November 24, expressing concern over the 'non-peaceful' expansion of this program. These four Western powers emphasized in a joint statement that the Islamic Republic's decision to further develop its nuclear program without providing peaceful justifications is alarming. They urged the Islamic Republic to return to the path of dialogue and cooperation with the Agency and to refrain from provocative actions. In this statement, the issuance of the Board of Governors resolution on Thursday, November 22, was seen as a response to Iran's lack of cooperation in clarifying information about undeclared nuclear materials discovered at several locations. The signatory countries stated that the Islamic Republic is obligated to inform the International Atomic Energy Agency of all its activities and materials in accordance with its commitments under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The Islamic Republic threatened to increase enrichment in response to the Board of Governors. The resolution of the Board of Governors against the Islamic Republic and international reactions. The United States: We are not participating in negotiations between the Islamic Republic and the three European powers. Kyodo News: Iran will negotiate with the three European powers in Geneva on Friday. Concerns of the United States and the European Troika regarding the expansion of Iran's 'non-peaceful' nuclear program. Condemnation of the Islamic Republic in the IAEA Board of Governors resolution.