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May 26, 2022

This month's newsletter features an update to a timeline tracking Iran’s
nuclear progress. New entries cover the appointment of a U.N.-sanctioned
individual as head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), a
monitoring dispute between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) over a centrifuge plant, and Iran’s use of advanced centrifuges to
enrich uranium, as well as proposals to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan
of Action (JCPOA).

The newsletter also features profiles of entities in a ballistic missile
procurement network, as well as news about IAEA monitoring in Iran,
increasing competition between Iran and Russia for a share of China’s oil
market, and the assassination of a senior IRGC Qods Force officer in
Tehran. Documents from the Iran Watch library include official statements
relating to security in the Persian Gulf, readouts of Iranian diplomatic
activity, and Congressional reports and testimony regarding U.S. policy
toward Iran.

[2]View the newsletter in your browser and [3]subscribe to receive it in
your inbox.

PUBLICATIONS

[4]

A checkpoint outside the Fordow nuclear plant. Image via Tasnim.

Timeline | [5]Iran Nuclear Milestones: 1967-2022

In August 2021, Mohammad Eslami, who is sanctioned by the United Nations
for his previous positions in Iran’s military industries, took over as head
of the AEOI. During his tenure, Iran has forged ahead with uranium
enrichment and the deployment of advanced centrifuges while continuing to
restrict the IAEA’s ability to monitor this work. The AEOI also closed a
damaged centrifuge component manufacturing plant and moved its equipment to
an underground facility in Natanz. Meanwhile, negotiations between Iran and
the P5+1 to revive the JCPOA struggled to produce results.

[6]READ THE NEW MILESTONES

ENTITIES OF CONCERN

In March, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Iranian companies that
have procured items from China related to ballistic missile propellant.

[7]Mohammad Ali Hosseini

Arranged for the purchase and shipment of processing machines used in the
production of solid missile propellant, from China-based suppliers; has met
and traveled with senior officials of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
(IRGC).

[8]LEARN MORE

[9]Sina Composite Delijan Company

Used by Mohammad Ali Hosseini to procure ballistic missile propellant and
related materials from China in support of Iran's missile program.

[10]LEARN MORE

[11]P.B. Sadr Co.

An Iran-based company affiliated with the Defense Industries Organization
(DIO); has acted on behalf of Parchin Chemical Industries (PCI) to procure
parts used to develop missile propellant from China.

[12]LEARN MORE

[13]Parchin Chemical Industries (PCI)

Part of Chemical Industries and Development of Material Group (CIDMG),
which is a branch of DIO; produces ammunition, explosives, and solid
propellants for rockets and missiles.

[14]LEARN MORE

IN THE NEWS

[15]

Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi holds a press conference on Khodaei’s
death. Image via Tasnim.

[16]Iran Revolutionary Guard Colonel Is Shot Dead In Tehran | Associated
Press

May 22, 2022: Two unidentified gunmen killed IRGC Colonel Hassan Sayyad
Khodaei outside his Tehran home on May 22. Khodaei's role within the IRGC
is unclear, but state-affiliated media called him a "defender of the
shrine," language that usually refers to Qods Force units that fight
against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. The IRGC said "global
arrogance," a term used often in Iran to refer to the United States and
Israel, was behind the killing. The IRGC separately announced that it had
uncovered an Israeli spy cell operating in the country.

[17]More Russian Oil Going East Squeezes Iranian Crude Sales To China | Al
Jazeera

May 19, 2022: Iranian oil exports to China fell by approximately 200,000
barrels per day from March to April, according to industry consultants,
likely due to a higher volume of competing Russian oil exports to Asia.
China, the main destination of Iranian oil exports, began buying heavily
discounted Russian oil at triple its previous rate, after Western countries
imposed sanctions on Russia. Russian crude oil is usually cheaper to refine
than Iranian crude. Approximately 20 Iranian tankers carrying nearly 40
million barrels of oil have been left anchored near Singapore searching for
buyers, according to shipping data and estimates by the analytics company
Kpler.

[18]IAEA Warns That Iran Not Forthcoming On Past Nuclear Activities |
Reuters

May 10, 2022: IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told EU lawmakers that
Iran has not been forthcoming about the presence of nuclear material at
three undeclared sites. Iran and the IAEA agreed to work to resolve
outstanding questions about the sites in March, and Tehran had agreed to
provide answers to the Agency before the IAEA Board of Governors meeting in
June. Grossi said that the situation "does not look very good" and that
finalizing a nuclear deal would be difficult without satisfactory
information about the sites.

[19]Iran Moves Centrifuge Parts Workshop Underground At Natanz, IAEA Says |
Reuters

April 28, 2022: Iran has set up a new centrifuge component manufacturing
plant in an underground part of its Natanz nuclear facility, according to
the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The plant's equipment was
previously located at a site in Karaj that suffered an alleged sabotage
attack last year; it is now present in the Natanz site's Fuel Enrichment
Plant (FEP). The FEP had previously only been used for uranium enrichment.

FROM THE LIBRARY

The European Union and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) announced a new
partnership, an Iranian spy satellite [20]photographed a U.S. naval base in
Bahrain, and the 5th Fleet commander spoke about security developments in
the region.
* The Saudi Deputy Minister of Defense met with U.S. Secretary of State
Antony Blinken and [21]affirmed the need to confront Iran’s destabilizing
actions - May 22
* A [22]strategic partnership between the European Union and the GCC will
cover economic and military ties, including [23]nuclear diplomacy with Iran
- May 18
* Vice Admiral Brad Cooper [24]briefed reporters on maritime security in
the Middle East, and U.S. Navy forces [25]interdicted a drug smuggling
vessel with an Iranian crew - May 11, 17

Iranian diplomats traveled to Venezuela, hosted a Chinese delegation and
spoke by phone with a U.N. envoy.
* Senior Chinese defense officials [26]visited Tehran in late April - May
16
* An Iranian Foreign Ministry official [27]spoke to the U.N. envoy for
Yemen about extending a ceasefire - May 11
* Iran’s Oil Minister [28]traveled to Venezuela to meet with his
counterpart and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro - May 6

Executive agencies reported to Congress about Iran, and the ranking member
of the House Foreign Affairs Committee wrote to the Biden administration
about JCPOA negotiations.
* The State Department [29]submitted a list of Iranians responsible for
human rights abuses, including judicial and military officials - May 12
* Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier
[30]testified on Iran as part of a Worldwide Threat Assessment briefing to
the Senate Armed Services Committee - May 10
* House Foreign Affairs Committee Lead Republican Michael McCaul
[31]argued that the Biden administration must conduct a thorough review
before lifting any sanctions on Iranian entities - April 27

Iran Watch is a website published by the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms
Control. The Wisconsin Project is a non-profit, non-partisan organization
that conducts research, advocacy, and public education aimed at inhibiting
strategic trade from contributing to the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction.

Copyright © 2022 - Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control

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