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Iran tripled its output of near-weapons grade nuclear fuel over the past three months, the UN’s nuclear watchdog said on Tuesday, signaling the reopening of a dangerous front in Tehran’s conflict with the West as the Gaza war intensifies.
The International Atomic Energy Agency told member states in a confidential report that Iran is now producing uranium enriched to 60% purity at a rate of 9 kg per month, up from 3 kg over the summer and early fall. The U.S. estimates that Tehran already has amassed enough fissile material for the production of three nuclear weapons and is moving dangerously close to the 90% purity that’s considered weapons grade.
Tehran has “increased its production of highly enriched uranium, reversing a previous output reduction from mid-2023,” the IAEA said in the report, which was first viewed by the Associated Press and Reuters.