Tehran: Nuclear Work to Continue Despite New US Sanctions

Iranian state television on Friday reported on a statement issued by the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) saying its personnel would continue their work despite sanctions announced this week by the United States against two senior AEOI officials. The officials were identified as Majid Agha’i and Amjad Sazgar. Both are said to be overseeing the development of centrifuges Iran is using to enrich uranium in defiance of a 2015 multilateral accord aimed at barring the country from developing nuclear weapons. The Trump Administration withdrew from the deal in 2018, and the Islamic State has been pushing back by ignoring limitations on uranium enrichment. The AEOI statement cited in the television report said the new sanctions would only serve to enhance the researchers’ determination to “continue their non-stop efforts more than before.” In announcing the sanctions, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo added that the US would reduce the waivers it had granted Tehran to proceed with international cooperation on its nuclear infrastructure, allowing work to continue only at the Bushehr power station.