Nuclear Chief: Iran Can Enrich Uranium ‘At Any Rate’

Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) head Mohammad Eslami (Reuters)
Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) head Mohammad Eslami (Reuters)
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Nuclear Chief: Iran Can Enrich Uranium ‘At Any Rate’

Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) head Mohammad Eslami (Reuters)
Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) head Mohammad Eslami (Reuters)

Iran can enrich uranium whenever it wants, and at any rate, announced head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Eslami.

In an interview with Iranian television, Eslami stated that the US wanted to stop Iran's nuclear technology but failed.

Asked about the failed negotiations to revive the nuclear deal, Eslami said that it was proved that the US reasons for not agreeing were mere excuses and that Washington's primary goal was to prevent Iran's progress.

Asked about reaching 60 percent of enriched uranium, the official said this step had a noticeable impact, and it was only normal to affect the negotiations.

He added that the US officials have an impression that Iran is a nuclear state and they cannot get rid of that quickly. More importantly, they realized these local abilities could not be eliminated.

Eslami pointed out that Iran recently carried out an unprecedented amount of enrichment, proving to all, whether friends or enemies, that the Iranian ability is real and undeniable.

Negotiations to revive the nuclear agreement between Iran and the major powers stalled in Vienna more than a year ago. Last September, the EU's attempt to renew the talks failed.

Tehran enriched uranium to 20 percent at the Natanz plant days after US President Joe Biden assumed his position in January 2021 and raised the enrichment rate to 60 percent at the facility in April.

In January 2022, Tehran began enriching uranium by 20 percent at the Fordow facility, and in June, it raised the enrichment to a purity of 60 percent.

In February, the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, said Iran's estimated stockpile of enriched uranium had reached more than 18 times the limit set out in the 2015 accord between Tehran and world powers.



Australia PM to Invite Israeli President to Visit

 15 August 2025, Australia, Sydney: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at the Martin Place cenotaph during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific, which commemorates Japan's acceptance of the Allied demand for unconditional surrender and the end of World War II for Australia. (dpa)
15 August 2025, Australia, Sydney: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at the Martin Place cenotaph during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific, which commemorates Japan's acceptance of the Allied demand for unconditional surrender and the end of World War II for Australia. (dpa)
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Australia PM to Invite Israeli President to Visit

 15 August 2025, Australia, Sydney: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at the Martin Place cenotaph during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific, which commemorates Japan's acceptance of the Allied demand for unconditional surrender and the end of World War II for Australia. (dpa)
15 August 2025, Australia, Sydney: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at the Martin Place cenotaph during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific, which commemorates Japan's acceptance of the Allied demand for unconditional surrender and the end of World War II for Australia. (dpa)

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday said his government would invite Israel's president to visit, after a mass shooting in Sydney targeting the Jewish community.

"Prime Minister Albanese advised President (Isaac) Herzog that, upon the recommendation of the Australian government, the Governor-General of Australia will issue an invitation in accordance with protocol to President Herzog to visit Australia as soon as possible," said a post on the leader's X account.

Fifteen people were killed and dozens injured in a mass shooting at a Jewish Hanukkah celebration at Bondi on December 14.


Trump Says It Would Be 'Smart' for Venezuela's Maduro to Leave Power

US President Donald Trump attends a press conference, as he makes an announcement about the Navy's "Golden Fleet" at Mar-a-lago in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 22, 2025. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak
US President Donald Trump attends a press conference, as he makes an announcement about the Navy's "Golden Fleet" at Mar-a-lago in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 22, 2025. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak
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Trump Says It Would Be 'Smart' for Venezuela's Maduro to Leave Power

US President Donald Trump attends a press conference, as he makes an announcement about the Navy's "Golden Fleet" at Mar-a-lago in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 22, 2025. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak
US President Donald Trump attends a press conference, as he makes an announcement about the Navy's "Golden Fleet" at Mar-a-lago in Palm Beach, Florida, US, December 22, 2025. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak

US President Donald Trump said on Monday it would be smart for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to leave power, and the United States could keep or sell the oil it had seized off the coast of Venezuela in recent weeks.

Trump's pressure campaign on Maduro has included a ramped-up military presence in the region and more than two dozen military strikes on vessels allegedly trafficking drugs in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near the South American nation. At least 100 people have been killed in ‌the attacks, reported Reuters.

Asked ‌if the goal was to force ‌Maduro ⁠from power, Trump ‌told reporters: "Well, I think it probably would... That's up to him what he wants to do. I think it'd be smart for him to do that. But again, we're gonna find out."

"If he wants to do something, if he plays tough, it'll be the last time he's ever able to play tough," he said.

During the press conference, Trump ⁠also took aim at Colombian President Gustavo Petro, who he has also feuded with throughout ‌the year.

"He's no friend to the ‍United States. He's very bad. ‍Very bad guy. He's gotta watch his ass because he makes ‍cocaine and they send it into the US," Trump said when asked about Petro's criticisms towards the Trump administration's handling of the tensions with Venezuela.

In addition to the strikes, Trump has previously announced a "blockade" of all oil tankers under sanctions entering and leaving Venezuela. The US Coast Guard started pursuing an oil tanker in international waters near Venezuela ⁠on Sunday, in what would be the second such operation this weekend and the third in less than two weeks if successful.

"Maybe we will sell it, maybe we will keep it," Trump said when asked what would happen with the seized oil, adding it might also be used to replenish the United States' strategic reserves. Without directly referring to Trump's statements, Maduro said every leader should attend to the internal affairs of their own country.

"If I speak to him again, I will tell him: each country should mind its own internal affairs," Maduro ‌said, referring to an initial phone call between the two leaders last month.


Suspected Militants Ambush Police Vehicle in Northwest Pakistan, Killing 5 Officers

File photo: Police officers stand guard to secure a procession during the mourning month of Muharram in Karachi, Pakistan, 03 July 2025. EPA/SHAHZAIB AKBER
File photo: Police officers stand guard to secure a procession during the mourning month of Muharram in Karachi, Pakistan, 03 July 2025. EPA/SHAHZAIB AKBER
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Suspected Militants Ambush Police Vehicle in Northwest Pakistan, Killing 5 Officers

File photo: Police officers stand guard to secure a procession during the mourning month of Muharram in Karachi, Pakistan, 03 July 2025. EPA/SHAHZAIB AKBER
File photo: Police officers stand guard to secure a procession during the mourning month of Muharram in Karachi, Pakistan, 03 July 2025. EPA/SHAHZAIB AKBER

Suspected militants opened fire on a police vehicle in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday, killing five officers before fleeing, officials said, part of a surge in violence in the region bordering Afghanistan.

The attack took place in the Karak district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province while police were on routine patrol near an oil and gas field, said local police chief Noor Wali told The Associated Press. He said the assailants, after killing the officers, poured gasoline on the vehicle and torched it.

A large police contingent cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to track the attackers, according to The Associated Press.

Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Suhail Afridi condemned the attack. In separate statements, they said the assailants would be brought to justice and expressed condolences to the families of the killed police officers.

No group immediately claimed responsibility, but suspicion is likely to fall on the Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, which is separate from but aligned with Afghanistan’s Taliban government and has been blamed by authorities for previous attacks.

Pakistan has seen a steady rise in militant violence, which has strained relations with Afghanistan. Islamabad accuses the TTP of operating freely inside Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover in 2021, a charge Kabul denies.

Tensions escalated in October after Afghanistan accused Pakistan of an Oct. 9 drone strike in Kabul, followed by cross-border clashes that killed dozens, before a Qatar-brokered cease-fire on Oct. 19. Talks in Istanbul last week ended without agreement.