Iran Says It Will Resume Activities Related to Uranium Enrichment

The Associated Press, USA Today:

Iran will likely resume some nuclear activities related to uranium enrichment next week, Iran's top nuclear negotiator was quoted by the state-run news agency as saying Saturday.

Hasan Rowhani said it was unlikely the Islamic Republic will resume actual uranium enrichment — injecting uranium gas into centrifuges — but that it expects to restart activities at its uranium conversion facility in Isfahan, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

"It's unlikely that uranium enrichment ... which takes place in Natanz will be resumed but it's likely that some activities at Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facility will restart next week," IRNA quoted Rowhani as saying. READ MORE

Both state-run television and the news agency reported that Rowhani was saying the activities will resume next week, though his remark as quoted by the agency appeared to leave some room for doubt.

The central cities of Natanz and Isfahan house the heart of Iran's nuclear program. The conversion facility in Isfahan reprocesses uranium ore concentrate into gas. The gas is then taken to Natanz and fed into the centrifuges for enrichment. ...

Reuters adds:

A senior diplomat in Tehran says that by stopping short of resuming the actual enrichment of uranium, a process that can be used to make bomb-grade fuel, Iran hopes to avoid a showdown.

"They're calculating that just resuming work at Isfahan will be enough to show its strength and anger to us but not enough for us to send its case to the Security Council," he said.