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29 March 2024

Iran to soon move nuclear material to bunker

Published
By Reuters

Iran plans to soon start moving nuclear material to an underground site for the pursuit of sensitive atomic activities, diplomatic sources say.

 

They said a first batch of uranium hexafluoride gas (UF6) -- material which is fed into machines used to refine uranium -- would be transferred to the Fordow site near the holy city of Qom in preparation for launching enrichment work there.

 

Enriched uranium can be used to fuel nuclear power plants, Iran's stated aim, or provide material for bombs if processed to a higher degree, which the West suspects is its ultimate goal.

 

Iran's main enrichment plant is located near the central town of Natanz. But the country announced in June it would move its higher-grade activity to Fordow, a subterranean facility offering better protection against any military attacks.

 

"For the first time they will have nuclear material in Fordow," one diplomatic source said. The step to bring a first cylinder of UF6 to a site is usually taken as part of the final preparatory work before starting production, the source said.

 

Iranian diplomats were not immediately available for comment on this information.

 

It would be a further sign of the Islamic Republic's determination to press ahead with a nuclear programme the West fears is geared towards developing atomic weapons but which Iran says is for peaceful purposes only.

 

It comes at a time of heightened tension over an alleged Iranian plot to kill the Saudi ambassador to Washington, a U.S. charge that Tehran rejects as a cynical attempt by its arch foe to further isolate the Islamic Republic.

 

Next month the U.N. nuclear watchdog is expected to publish a report that is likely to heighten suspicions that Iran has been carrying out nuclear work with possible military aspects.

 

Analysts say the findings in the report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) could bolster the West's case for imposing additional sanctions on the major oil producer.

 

"The IAEA has a lot of information that would allow the agency to come to clear findings on the issue of possible military dimensions," one Western official said.