Editorial: Iran Deal Update - 11,000 Kilograms of Enriched Uranium Leave Iran for Russia

Image: Wiki Commons

By Ankit Panda

Iran has complied with a major requirement of the July 2015 nuclear deal and shipped thousands of kilograms of uranium out of the country.

On Monday, Iran reached a major milestone in the implementation of the July 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)—the international agreement to place restrictions on the country’s nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions. Almost all of Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium was shipped out of the country, fulfilling a key requirement of the nuclear deal. According to Reuters, a ship carrying more than 11,000 kilograms of low-enriched uranium (LEU) left Iran. Per the nuclear agreement, Iran may retain 300 kilograms of LEU on hand. That amount of enriched uranium is inadequate for a nuclear weapon.

The United States confirmed the departure of the LEU from Iranian soil. In a written statement, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who played a critical role in the negotiations toward the deal, noted that “The shipment included the removal of all of Iran’s nuclear material enriched to 20 percent that was not already in the form of fabricated fuel plates for the Tehran Research Reactor.” “This removal of all this enriched material out of Iran is a significant step toward Iran meeting its commitment to have no more than 300 kg of low-enriched uranium,” Kerry’s statement continued.

Read the full story at The Diplomat