Latest Nuclear Technology Achievements Showcased

Iran officially unveiled 133 projects in various sectors of its civilian nuclear industry on Saturday, marking the 15th anniversary of the National Nuclear Technology Day.   
In a videoconference call, President Hassan Rouhani ordered the unveilings in the provinces of Markazi, Isfahan, Alborz, Tehran and Qom.
Among the major projects was injection of uranium gas into a complete chain of 164 IR-6 centrifuges, 30 IR-5 centrifuges, 30 IR-6s centrifuges and mechanical tests on IR-9 machines.
Other achievements included such sectors as quantum, heavy water and deuterium compounds, radiopharmaceuticals and lasers. 
Rouhani later visited an exhibition of the projects in person where he was briefed by Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, about the new achievements.
He highlighted the peaceful and non-military nature of all Iranian nuclear activities, saying the technology is used in industrial, agricultural, medicinal and energy sectors. 
“Iran has never had, does not and will not have non-peaceful objectives in its nuclear activities,” he was quoted as saying by President.ir. 
Rouhani also said international concerns about Iran’s nuclear plans are redundant and have caused trouble for the country for more than 15 years.
“Some world powers, having used this technology for other [military] objectives … express concern about Iran’s peaceful programs,” he said.  

Ethical, Religious Frameworks

Iran agreed to curb its nuclear activities in return for the lifting of international sanctions under a 2015 nuclear deal with six world powers, which is formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
“One of the key outcomes of JCPOA was that it made Iran’s nuclear technology completely legal and reclaimed the rights of the Iranian nation,” Rouhani said. 
The United States, however, pulled out unilaterally and reimposed sanctions, forcing Iran to reduce its compliance and gradually resume parts of its previous activities until the revival of JCPOA’s economic benefits.
Nevertheless, Rouhani stressed that Iran continues to comply with its pledge under the Non-Proliferation Treaty that requires member states to avoid deviating their civilian nuclear program toward military applications.   
“Iran pursues the sensitive technology within the frameworks of ethics and religious instructions [which ban the production and use of weapons of mass destruction],” he said. 
The AEOI chief also said on Saturday that the advancement of nuclear knowledge can pave the way for the progress of other strategic industries and empirical sciences across the country. 
“We intend to add to our achievements while remaining committed to international regulations and maintaining interaction with the world based on the principles of dignity, wisdom and [national] interests,” he was quoted as saying by IRNA. 
The inauguration comes as an Iranian delegation is holding intense talks in Vienna, Austria, with the remaining parties to JCPOA on how to restore the agreement to its original shape with all parties, as well as the US, fully implementing their obligations.    
The new US administration has expressed willingness to rejoin the agreement, but the situation is facing a deadlock with both Washington and Iran calling on the other side to take the first step. 
Iran has declared repeatedly that it is ready to reverse its measures beyond the deal’s limits and resume full compliance as soon as the US lifts all its sanctions and Iran verifies its effectiveness. 
Although the US is not attending the JCPOA meetings, a delegation from Washington is stationed in Vienna, indirectly sharing the results of the negotiations through Europe. 
Experts groups are currently working on a feasible process of sanctions lifting by the US and nuclear implementation by Iran. The JCPOA Joint Commission is set to reconvene on Wednesday to discuss the results of the consultations.