The Obama administration has found that traces of man-made uranium discovered at the Parchin military base in Iran by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 2015 were consistent with evidence linking the site to Iran's past nuclear weapons program. Administration officials said that the finding did not change the conclusion of the U.S. intelligence community that Iran had halted its nuclear weapon development efforts in 2003. The two particles of uranium were discovered during an IAEA inspection of the military site last year--a visit that Iranian officials said would not be repeated.
News Briefs
June 15, 2016
Iran has begun reintegrating its economy with the international banking system by developing ties with smaller foreign banks that have little or no business with the United States and therefore minimal exposure to potential U.S. sanctions. According to Iran's central bank, Iranian banks have recently initiated relationships with 200 small and medium-sized international banks. These 200 banks include Europaeisch-Iranische Handelsbank AG--a German-based bank that is majority-owned by Iranian interests--and two Italian banks, Mediobanca and Banca Popolare di Sondrio. Larger global banks are reportedly remaining on the sidelines due to perceived legal risks.
-- Reuters
June 14, 2016
Erdal Kuyumcu, CEO of New York-based Global Metallurgy LLC, pleaded guilty in a New York court to one count of conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Kuyumcu conspired to obtain and export over 1,000 pounds of a metallic powder composed of cobalt and nickel from the United States to Iran without a required license from the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Kuyumcu, 44, and his co-conspirators arranged to ship the metallic powder to Turkey to conceal the identity of the Iranian end-user. The powder has applications in nuclear technology, missile production, and aerospace. Kuyumcu faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
-- Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs
June 3, 2016
Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said in an interviiew that Iran appears to be complying with the nuclear agreement reached with six world powers in July 2015. Amano stated, though, that his Agency's inspectors are stretched thin by the task of verifying Iran's compliance with the accord and that the IAEA is still in the process of building up the capacity to monitor dozens of nuclear-related facilities. Amano also said that the IAEA's recent reports on Iran are less detailed than those issued before the nuclear agreement because of new rules imposed by the deal. He added that the Agency does not view Iran's denials of past nuclear weapons-related experiments as credible.
-- Washington Post
Canadian-Iranian Citizen Sentenced To Three Years In Prison For Conspiring To Violate Iran Sanctions
May 23, 2016
Ali Reza Parsa, a Canadian-Iranian dual citizen and resident of Canada, was sentenced to three years in federal prison for procuring dual-use electronic components for Iranian companies in violation of U.S. sanctions. Between 2009 and 2015, Parsa conspired to obtain U.S.-made high-tech electronic components with both commerical and military uses for transshipment to Iran and other countries on behalf of clients of his Iranian procurement company. Parsa used his Canadian company, Metal PM, to purchase components from U.S. suppliers and then transshipped the goods from Canada or the United Arab Emirates to Iran and other locations, falsifying the identity of the end-users in the transactions. The goods included cryogenic accelerators, which have applications related to ballistic missile propellants and liquid-fuel rocket engines.
-- U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York
April 22, 2016
The U.S. Department of Energy announced the purchase of 32 metric tons of heavy water from Iran for $8.6 million and expects delivery within weeks. Under the terms of the nuclear agreement, Iran is currently permitted to keep 130 tons of heavy water and only 90 tons once the redesigned Arak reactor is commissioned. Iran's lead nuclear negotiator, Abbas Araqchi, said Iran has about 70 tons of excess heavy water and is in talks with another, non-American company to sell the remaining stock.
-- Reuters
April 20, 2016
Iran conducted its first launch of the new Simorgh space launch vehicle, a launch that was judged to be partly successful by U.S. intelligence agencies. According to a U.S. defense official, the event was either an unsuccessful launch or a test of the rocket's third stage that was not intended to send a satellite into orbit. A State Department spokesman said he could not confirm the launch. The Simorgh, a large liquid-fueled rocket, has been under surveillance by U.S. satellites at a launch pad at Iran's Semnan satellite launch center. The rocket is believed to be based on North Korean missile technology and capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. U.S. Vice Adm. James Syring, director of the Missile Defense Agency, told Congress that the Simorgh eventually could be reconfigured as an intercontinental ballistic missile.
-- Washington Free Beacon
April 11, 2016
Russia has delivered the first part of its S-300 air defense system to Iran. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Jaberi Ansari announced on April 11 that the first phase of the S-300 contract between Russia and Iran had been implemented. While the Foreign Ministry neither confirmed nor denied an actual delivery, several unnamed sources confirmed to Mehr News Agency that a delivery had taken place, reportedly through the Caspian Sea.
-- Mehr News Agency
April 8, 2016
A Belgian chemical distributor, Chemical Partners Europe S.A. (CPE), agreed to pay a $350,000 fine to the Bureau of Industry and Security to settle six charges related to the export of coatings, pigments, and paints to Iran. Between January 2010 and March 2011, CPE allegedly exported about $244,358 worth of U.S.-origin items with nuclear or marine applications to Iran using falsified export declarations.
-- The Export Practitioner
April 7, 2016
Iran celebrated its National Day of Nuclear Technology by unveiling twelve new indigenously developed nuclear industry achievements. The ceremony, which was attended by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, included the announcement of new centrifuge systems, fuel rod complexes, the Pasman Gor nuclear site in the Anarak region, and three books related to nuclear technology and Iran's nuclear program.
-- Fars News Agency