Speaker on Iranian Parliament Announces Increasing Enrichment of Uranium to 60%

Mohamed Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker on the Iranian parliament (Iranian Majles) tweeted today, Friday, that his country succeeded in increasing enrichment of uranium in nuclear plants to 60%.

Statements of  the Iranian official coincided with negotiations in Vienna between Iran and the permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany to revive the nuclear agreement signed in 2015, according to US media outlets.

The new declaration of Tehran violates the nuclear agreement which prevents Iran from enriching uranium above 3.67 % level.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken considered Iran's plans to increase the enrichment of uranium as a provocative step.

Over a news conference  held in the headquarter of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Vienna, the capital city of Austria, Blinken warned that the Iranian decision leads to inquire the seriousness of Tehran to participate in the nuclear negotiations.

The chief US diplomat went on to say that meanwhile the USA shows more seriousness toward the nuclear agreement, the Iranian government doesn't respond in similar manner.

On his part, Iran's President Hassan Rohani, affirmed that  increasing the level of uranium enrichment to 60% and installing new developed centrifugal devices in Natanz nuclear plant came as a preliminary response to the attack on it.

He referred to an explosion in plant that took place days earlier.

On the other hand, Jane Psaki, spokeswoman of the White House (the US presidency) said that the USA and Iran are going to resume indirect talks next Thursday in Vienna.

In another context, Governments of Germany, France and United Kingdom (UK) expressed deep concern at Iran's announcement to increase enrichment of uranium to 60% by using high-end centrifugal devices.

Tehran informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on April 13 on its intention to increase enrichment of uranium.

The three governments issued a statement to warn that the higher level of enrichment is a decisive step toward producing nuclear arms.

The statement stressed that Iran has no civilian need to increase the enrichment of uranium to such higher level at all.