Iran breaches nuclear pact again, urges European powers to act soon to save it

Iran announced Saturday that it has once again breached the nuclear pact it signed in 2015.

Behrouz Kamalvandi, a spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said Tehran has begun using advanced centrifuge machines — devices that enrich uranium — and is now capable of raising uranium enrichment past the 20 percent level.

The information appears to serve as a bargaining chip in Iran's negotiations with the European powers, including France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, that are trying to salvage the 2015 deal after the U.S. dropped out of the agreement last year. Kamalvandi warned Europe that it has little time to save the accord, adding that the countries should make their decision soon. "Our stockpile is quickly increasing," he said. "We hope they will come to their senses."

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Tehran, which maintains its nuclear program is peaceful and that International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors have full and regular access to Iran's nuclear installations, began exceeding limits on its nuclear capacity in May in retaliation for mounting U.S. pressure. Read more at The Associated Press and Reuters.