Iran Produces New Isotope, Set to Expand Nuclear Program
TEHRAN – Iran’s nuclear chief
Muhammad Eslami says the country is determined to continue to develop its nuclear program, despite the West’s efforts to cap the country’s heavy water production.
The West heightened pressure to eventually dismantle Iran’s heavy water production plants, as it did in some eastern European countries; Eslami said.
Owing to effective measures adopted by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, Iran’s nuclear program is expanding every day, “making profound impact” on people’s livelihood, and health system, he added.
He made the remarks during an inauguration ceremony marking the manufacture of homegrown kits for newborn screening tests designed to detect metabolic conditions on Tuesday.
“We managed to procure oxygen-18 isotope in the process of heavy water production,” Eslami said.
Oxygen-18 isotope is widely used in various sciences such as the environment, biochemistry, diagnosis, and medical treatment.
Eslami said that the kits used for detecting newborns’ metabolic condition used to be imported to the country in limited numbers, adding that “Iran is now among the top five countries manufacturing the kits.”
“The kit was produced within a year and we have plans to export it as well,” he added.
Last January, Iran’s nuclear spokesman, Behrouz Kamalvandi, said the country is currently producing enough heavy water inside the country, and is even exporting surplus to eight countries.
He said the country must have its own nuclear power plants, and produce the fuel required for those plants, as well as the nuclear medicine it needs.
IAEA Chief Still Hopeful Vienna Talks Can End in Agreement
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency says he is still hopeful for an agreement to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal but has warned that the opportunity could be lost.
“We are, of course, still hopeful that some agreement is going to be reached within a reasonable time frame, although we have to recognize the fact that the window of opportunity could be closed any time,” Rafael Grossi told the European Parliament via web stream on Tuesday.
The IAEA chief made the remarks as Enrique Mora, the European Union deputy foreign policy chief and Vienna talks coordinator was expected to arrive in Iran to try to find a way to break the deadlock in nearly a year of talks between Iran and the P4+1 group to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
Later in his remarks, Grossi said “In the last few months we were able to identify traces of enriched uranium in places that had never been declared by Iran as places where any activity was taking place.”
Iran and the P4+1 namely Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany have held many rounds of negotiations over the past year to find a way to remove sanctions against Iran and allow the United States to rejoin the JCPOA.
Talks stopped for a break on April 9 to allow the negotiators to go back to their capitals for consultations, but differences between Washington and Tehran seem to have grown ever since.