The administration of Donald Trump said it will allow Russian, Chinese and European companies to continue work at Iranian nuclear sites, arguing their presences would make it harder for the Islamic Republic to develop a nuclear weapon - a decision that drew ire from Iran-hawk Republicans.
But the Trump administration also imposed sanctions on Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI) and its chief, a move described by the entity"s spokesman as a sign of Washington"s "despair", who said Tehran"s civilian nuclear work would continue full force.
The Trump administration, which, in 2018, pulled out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on Iran, will let the work go forward by issuing waivers to sanctions that bar non-US firms from dealing with the AEOI.
The waivers" renewal for 60 days will allow nonproliferation work to continue at the Arak heavy-water research reactor, the Bushehr nuclear power plant, the Tehran Research Reactor and other nuclear cooperation initiatives.