The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a confidential report that Iran has likely doubled its stockpile of uranium enriched to 60% purity since November 2021. In November, the IAEA estimated that Iran held 15.5 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium, and now the Agency estimates that Iran has 33.2 kilograms. The IAEA also estimates that Iran's total enriched uranium stockpile has also increased to 3197.1 kilograms. The Agency cautioned that its estimates are inexact because Iran has blocked access to monitoring equipment since last year.
News Briefs
March 2, 2022
Satellite images show scorch marks and debris on a launchpad at Iran's Imam Khomeini Spaceport, suggesting that Iran experienced another rocket launch failure. The imagery showed a gantry similar to one used in an earlier launch of the Zuljanah space-launch vehicle (SLV), which has two solid-fueled and one liquid-fueled stage. The U.S. Space Command did not detect a launch, which indicates that the SLV failed on the launchpad.
-- Associated Press
February 28, 2022
The U.N. Security Council imposed an arms embargo on the entire Houthi group on February 28, expanding a ban that had previously targeted specific Houthi leaders. While no member of the Council voted against the resolution, Brazil, Ireland, Mexico, and Norway abstained. The resolution extends the arms embargo and additional sanctions on Houthi leaders until February 2023.
-- Reuters
February 25, 2022
Iran's top nuclear official said on February 25 that Iran will continue enriching uranium to both 5% and 20% purity even if U.S. sanctions are lifted as part of a revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The JCPOA capped enrichment at 3.67%. Unnamed Iranian officials had previously said that Iran would be willing to suspend its 20% and higher enrichment activity as part of a revived JCPOA.
-- Reuters
February 21, 2022
The commander of the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet announced plans to create a contingent of 100 unmanned vessels to patrol sea routes in the Middle East. The Navy and regional U.S. security partners such as Israel and the United Arab Emirates, who have both developed indigenous UAV capabilities, will jointly operate the new drone fleet.
-- Reuters
February 17, 2022
Diplomats involved in nuclear negotiations in Vienna shared details of a draft deal on February 17. The draft outlines steps parties will take to bring them back into compliance with the JCPOA. Initially, Iran would stop enriching uranium above 5% purity and release Western prisoners held in Iran, and the United States would unfreeze $7 billion of frozen Iranian funds held abroad. Subsequent steps would include the United States issuing sanctions waivers permitting Iran to export its oil and Iran abiding by a 3.67% enrichment cap. The stages would culminate in a Re-Implementation Day one to three months from an agreement on the proposed deal. According to unnamed officials, Iran seeks to include a measure that would allow it to resume enriching uranium to 60% if the United States violates the new deal.
-- Reuters
February 10, 2022
Iranian crude exports exceeded 1 million bpd between December 2021 and January 2022 for the first time in three years, according to industry sources. Most of the oil was sold to China. In January, China officially reported Iranian oil imports for the first time in a year. Total Iranian oil exports in January were the highest since 2019, when the United States ended sanctions waivers for countries that imported Iranian oil, but were still far below the 2.5 million bpd shipped prior to the re-imposition of U.S. sanctions in 2018.
-- Reuters
February 9, 2022
On February 9, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unveiled a new ballistic missile with a claimed range of 1,450 kilometers. According to Iranian state media, the "Kheibar Shekan" missile uses a solid-fuel engine and domestically manufactured components.
-- Reuters
February 4, 2022
On February 4, the United States restored waivers that shield foreign companies working on certain civilian nuclear projects in Iran from U.S. sanctions. The waivers permit work at nuclear facilities in Bushehr, Arak, and at the Tehran Research Reactor and apply to companies from the European Union, China, and Russia. The Trump administration had rescinded the waivers in May 2020, two years after withdrawing the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
-- Associated Press
January 31, 2022
Iran moved centrifuge manufacturing equipment from the TESA Karaj plant to Isfahan in late January, just over a month after agreeing to allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to access the Karaj plant. Iranian officials notified the IAEA of the move on January 19 and allowed the Agency to install cameras at the Isfahan facility five days later. The Agency also placed seals on the remaining equipment in Karaj and removed its cameras there. The IAEA noted in a confidential report that production at Karaj had ceased and that the Isfahan facility had not yet begun production as of January 24.
-- Reuters