Iran to increase the purity of enriched uranium to 60 percent

One of Iran’s leading nuclear negotiators said on Tuesday the country would be increasing the purity of uranium it enriches to 60 percent following an attack on its Natanz nuclear facility on Sunday.

Abbas Araghchi made the remarks while in Vienna, Austria, for a second week of negotiations for a nuclear deal The Wall Street Journal reports. Araghchi did not say how long it would take for Iran to reach the higher level of purity, with the Journal noting that Iran has only enriched uranium up to 20 percent until now.

This increase in purity would bring Iran closer to reaching weapons-grade levels of uranium purity, which stands at around 90 percent.

A spokesman for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Behrouz Kamalvandi, told Iran’s state-run news agency IRNA that preparations for enhanced uranium purity would begin after Tuesday at the Natanz facility

The attack occurred Sunday, the same day U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with Israel’s government.

Iran accused Israel of being behind the attack on Monday, calling it “nuclear terrorism.” Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack, though multiple Israeli news outlets reported the attack was caused by Israeli cyberattack, possibly led by the country’s intelligence agency Mossad.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has previously said he would do anything stop Iran’s nuclear program.

This announcement may further imperil hopes for a renewed nuclear deal with Iran. The U.S. exited the prior Iran nuclear deal in 2018 under former President Trump.