In July 2015, an agreement reached between Iran and other Global Powers including the United States, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Under this agreement, Iran agreed to take apart its nuclear program and open nuclear facilities to more extensive inspection internationally in exchange for sanction relief.
The deal was later in 2018 was uncertain after the withdrawal of US President Donald Trump from this agreement, since then Iran resumed some of its nuclear activities. Joe Biden's administration shows willingness back to the deal if Iran comes back into its compliance.
Some analyst pointed out it's going to be difficult to renewed diplomacy especially in current circumstances after some prominent events like the Assassination of General Soleimani, Nuclear Scientist Mohsin Fakhrizadeh assassinated last year, some of the major attacks on Iran nuclear facility and so forth. This kind of events surely influenced relation amongst the sovereign states.
Let's summarize what is going on and how things are getting worst with time...
Recent Attack on Natanz further rise tension between Iran, Israel and the US. According to 13 news, Natanz attacked on Sunday at 4am, where more than a thousand workers were present but caused no casualties at the place. Some others official said an explosive was placed near the main electricity line at Natanz and when it exploded, the entire facility stopped working.
More importantly, the attack took place hours after the Natanz reactor restarted spinning advanced centrifuges namely IR-5 and IR-6, which will further enrich uranium faster than Iran's first-generation centrifuges, known as IR-1. Remember nuclear deal accord limited Iran to using only IR-1's enrichment. The Islamic Republic has called the attack an act of "nuclear terrorism".
However, after the incident Iran's foreign minister Javad Zarif on Monday blamed Israel for a power failure that reportedly caused massive defacement to the Natanz nuclear facility, vowing to "take revenge on the Zionists". Many sources admitted that Israel appeared to confirm claims that it was behind a cyber-attack on Iran's main nuclear facility on Sunday. Sabotage operation from Israel can only slightly delay Iran's nuclear program. In simple words, Israelis do not have the capacity to eradicate the program - which probably explains why it has never mounted an airstrike on Iran's soil.
Israel and US media quoted unnamed intelligence sources as saying it was believed to have caused significant damage to the centrifuges and set back Iran's uranium enrichment ability by at least around nine-month or more.
Well, this is not the first time that Isreal and the US sabotaging Iranian nuclear site - just go back to history, the most effective and successful attack put into effect was the Stuxnet Virus - Stuxnet reportedly destroyed numerous centrifuges in Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment facility by causing them to burn themselves out. It estimated nearly 5,000 centrifuges at Natanz offline in 2010.
Israel and US media quoted unnamed intelligence sources as saying it was believed to have caused significant damage to the centrifuges and set back Iran’s uranium enrichment ability by at least nine months.
While speaking to the Natanz location, it is located in the central province of Isfahan, consider a centrepiece of Iran's uranium enrichment programme and is monitored by observers of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
After the Natanz incident, US Defense Secretary Austin landed in Israel for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Ministry Benny Gants. The reason behind this visit to reenter the 2015 atomic accord aimed to limit Tehran's program so that it can't pursue a nuclear weapon.
Despite the severe sabotaging, Iran is now producing 20% enriched material, far above the 3.67% threshold allowed by the deal and closer to the 90% needed for a nuclear weapon. Anthony Blinken says that Iran's "breakout time" to amass enough fissile material for a bomb has gone from more than a year to only three to four months. But, Israels says the breakout time is six months. Iran says its nuclear work only has civilian aims.
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