International Atomic Energy Agency raises alert for Iran's nuclear actions

Growing global concern about the nuclear programs of some countries brings to light new studies on uranium enrichment by Islamic countries and those at war with other nations. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which is linked to the United Nations (UN), Iran has been showing signs that it could become a nuclear threat in a few years.

Iranian nuclear program and uranium enrichment

Iran is a country that has always been involved in territorial, military and religious wars with Middle Eastern nations, such as Iraq, supports extremist groups such as Hezbollah, in Lebanon, and is helped by Russia in some wars against rivals. Now, it has been confirmed by the IAEA that the Iranian government intends to increase its advantage in these conflicts by using nuclear weapons, based on uranium enriched up to 90%.

Currently, the quantity and use of the chemical element in the country reaches six kilos per month, corresponding to 60% of the volume needed to build a bomb. This rapid advance has been worrying UN experts linked to the subject. According to a report sent confidentially to Member States, the accumulation of radioactive metal means that up to four bombs are in production in the Islamic country.

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_{Missile is observed by Iranian civilians (Photo: reproduction/AFP/Zain Jaafar/Getty Images Embed)}

Iran denies speculation

On the other hand, the country vehemently denies that its nuclear program is aimed at attacking its rivals or exterminating civilians. Representatives of the Iranian government claim that its installations and studies in the nuclear area are for peaceful purposes, which is contested by the United States and UN member countries.

The justification is that only nations interested in manufacturing nuclear weapons seek uranium enrichment. “They were preparing and they have all those facilities kind of on hold, and now they are activating them (…). If they actually put them all into operation, it would be a huge leap”said Rafael Grossi, head of the IAEA.

The body says that Iran must account for its nuclear program, which has not been done so far. Furthermore, the country needs to provide guarantees that all radioactive material present in its territory is not misused, in this case, to produce nuclear bombs.

The United States promises to harm the economy of the country located in the Middle East if the conditions are followed as requested by the UN. Recently, the Iranians launched the Simorgh rocket, with their own resources, and it was speculated that the space program could be another nuclear alternative, especially in the transport of warheads.

Some European countries intend to have new meetings with the Iranian government on the issue. Even though there is no official diplomatic process, an agreement signed in 2015 aimed to remove political and economic sanctions on Iran, in exchange for transparency in nuclear matters. As the United States broke the pact in 2019, Iran also no longer followed the treaty, which will expire in October next year.

Featured photo: Iranian representative during official event (Reproduction/Instagram/@irangov.en)