Iran's decision to enrich uranium goes against Vienna agreement: France

After President Hassan Rouhani announced plans to resume uranium enrichment at an underground plant south of Tehran, France said it will "go against the Vienna agreement".

"The announcements by Iran... go against the Vienna agreement," the French foreign ministry said in a statement. "We urge Iran to go back on its decisions which contradict the accord," it added.

On Tuesday, Iran had said it fired up advanced centrifuges to boost its enriched uranium stockpiles. The Rouhani government said it now produces 5 kg of enriched uranium per day which is ten times the level from two months ago when it abandoned the nuclear deal.

Iran today said it was injecting gas into 1,044 centrifuges at its Fordow plant which marks a new step in reducing commitments towards the 2015 nuclear deal.

"We know their sensitivity with regard to Fordow. With regard to these centrifuges, we know. But at the same time when they uphold their commitments, we will cut off the gas again...So it is possible to reverse this step," Rouhani said, adding," We can't unilaterally accept that we completely fulfil our commitments and they don't follow up on their commitments."

"Under the terms of the deal the Islamic Republic is allowed to spin the centrifuges at Fordow without injecting gas," Rouhani asserted.

Russia said it was monitoring the development as Iran announced its decision to enrich uranium against the rules set by the nuclear deal.

"The dismantling of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) does not bode well, of course," President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. 

"We support the preservation of this deal," Peskov added.