Page 13 - IRANRptNov21

2.7 Iran declares it has 120kg of 20% enriched uranium ‘but needs the fuel to make radioisotopes’
Iran has built up a stockpile of more than 120 kilograms of 20%-enriched uranium, Mohammad Eslami, head of the country’s atomic energy organisation said on October 10.
Tehran argues that it needs the fuel for the Tehran reactor—originally supplied to Iran by the US in the 1960s—to make radioisotopes for use in medical treatments and agriculture, but under the 2015 nuclear deal, or JCPOA, Iran was not meant to enrich uranium above 3.67%. The level needed for use in an atomic bomb is 90%.
“We have passed 120 kilograms,” Eslami said. “We have more than that figure. Our people know well that [western powers] were meant to give us the enriched fuel at 20% to use in the Tehran reactor, but they haven’t done so.
“If our colleagues do not do it, we would naturally have problems with the lack of fuel for the Tehran reactor.”
In September, the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimated that Iran had 84.3kg of uranium enriched to 20%, up from 62.8kg in May. Under the JCPOA, China, France, Germany, the UK and the US consented to removing major sanctions against Iran if Tehran verifiably restricted its nuclear development programme. But ex-US president Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the deal in 2018, even though Tehran was in full compliance with it. In response, the Iranians have gradually abandoned JCPOA commitments.
On October 8, the Iranian foreign minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, reiterated that Iran would “soon” return to talks aimed at reviving the JCPOA with world powers that include indirect negotiations with the US Biden administration, which wants to reverse Trump’s abandonment of the deal if the right path to do that can be found.
On October 10, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the coming weeks would be decisive for the future of the JCPOA, adding that every day that passes without Tehran responding to US overtures would result in Iran enriching more uranium.
Speaking during a visit to Israel, the outgoing chancellor said Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping also had a responsibilty to help to push Iran back to the negotiating table.
2.8 Polls & Sociology
Poll finds most Iranians say economic mismanagement factor with biggest negative impact on economy
Economic mismanagement is the factor with the biggest negative impact on the Iranian economy according to 63% or Iranians who responded to a survey conducted by Toronto-based IranPoll with the University of Maryland’s Center for International and Security Studies.
Foreign sanctions had the biggest negative effect on the economy, according to 34% of the respondents.
Nearly 75% of those surveyed—between August 30 and September 9—said the economy was bad, with 54% describing it as very bad. However, 54% said
13 IRAN Country Report November 2021 www.intellinews.com