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IAEA Says Iran's Uranium Stockpile Has Grown to Level Five Times Above Nuclear Deal Limits - Reports

© AP Photo / VAHID SALEMI An Iranian security official, dressed in protective clothing, walks inside the Uranium Conversion Facility, just outside the city of Isfahan, 410 kilometers, (255 miles), south of the Iranian capital Tehran in this Wednesday, March 30, 2005
 An Iranian security official, dressed in protective clothing, walks inside the Uranium Conversion Facility, just outside the city of Isfahan, 410 kilometers, (255 miles), south of the Iranian capital Tehran in this Wednesday, March 30, 2005 - Sputnik International
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The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) has been in jeopardy since Washington's unilateral withdrawal from the treaty in May 2018, with Tehran insisting that the deal is "still alive" despite US pressure and the failure of its European signatories to meet their obligations.

Iran's stockiple of low-enriched uranium has reached nearly 1,021 kg, far above the 202.8 kg limit outlined in the JCPOA, Reuters and AP have reported, citing an International Atomic Energy Agency report that has yet to be made public.

According to the news agencies, the nuclear energy watchdog indicated that the stockpile, as well as the levels to which Iran has been enriching its uranium, are in breach of the 2015 nuclear deal.

The IAEA also reportedly accuses Tehran of failing to engage the agency in substantive discussions on these and other concerns, including alleged undeclared nuclear material at three undeclared locations across the country.

"The agency identified a number of questions related to possible undeclared nuclear material and nuclear-related activities at three locations in Iran that had not been declared by Iran," the report says, according to the agencies.

IAEA director general Rafael Grossi was said to have urged Iranian authorities to "immediately cooperate fully" to address the agency's concerns, including through the provision of "prompt access" to two sites.

"Iran has not provided access to the agency to two locations...and has not engaged in substantive discussions to clarify agency questions related to possible undeclared nuclear material and nuclear-related activities," the report said, according to Reuters.

The report comes shortly after unnamed sources quoted by Reuters said that the IAE was considering issuing a report to berate Tehran for its alleged attempts not to provide access to sites of interest to the nuclear watchdog. The sites' existence was said to have been first reported on by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a speech at the UN in 2018.

Iran Deal 'Still Alive' But in Trouble

Iran began scaling back its commitments to the nuclear deal in May 2018, after the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from the agreement and hit the Middle Eastern nation with tough sanctions after some lobbying from Tel Aviv. Tehran's efforts have included building up its enriched uranium stockpile and using advanced centrifuges to increase enrichment levels.

At the same time, Iranian officials have said as recently as last week that the JCPOA was "still alive," and that Tehran would be prepared to negotiate with Washington about Iran's nuclear programme, but only if the US returns to the JCPOA and scraps sanctions.

Last month, Iran warned that it would have to revise its participation in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if Western countries kept up their pressure against the Islamic Republic.

Tehran continues to insist that it has no intention of using its uranium to build a nuclear weapon, saying such weapons run counter the country's Islamic faith.

Iran's enrichment levels are currently believed to be steady at around 4.5 percent, above the limit of 3.67 percent set out in the JCPOA, but below the 20 percent level the country achieved before the nuclear deal in 2015. Scientists classify uranium as 'weapons grade' once its U-25 concentration reaches 80-90 percent or above. For instance, the nuclear bombed which the US dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 had a U-235 enrichment level of about 80 percent.

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