[1]

November 30, 2022

This month’s newsletter features an article examining Tehran’s growing
willingness to supply the Houthi rebels in Yemen with advanced ballistic
missiles. It also features an updated report tracking Iran’s deployment of
centrifuges for uranium enrichment, such as the recent increase in the
number of second-generation IR-2m cascades installed at Natanz from six to
15.

In addition, the newsletter includes profiles of several entities
sanctioned by the United States for their involvement in Iran’s transfer of
armed drones to Russia, as well as news about the launch of the Ghaem-100
satellite carrier rocket, a report that Iran may be preparing to help
Russia build drones domestically, and increased levels of uranium
enrichment at Fordow. This month’s additions to the Iran Watch library
include the latest set of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reports
on Iran’s nuclear program, multiple sanctions announcements, and official
responses to Iran’s aggressive actions beyond its borders.

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PUBLICATIONS

[4]

A comparison of the Houthi Hatem (top) and the Iranian Kheibar Shekan
(bottom) missiles. (Credits: Screenshot from a YouTube video [top] and
Wikimedia Commons [bottom])

Article | [5]Iran Solidifies Missile Support to the Houthis

Both Iran’s armed forces and Yemen’s Houthi rebels staged major military
parades in late September. The two parades offered indications that Iran
may be increasingly willing to supply the Houthis with its most advanced
missiles, and to run greater risks in doing so. They also illustrated an
often-overlooked benefit for Iran of transferring weapons to non-state
groups: the ability to collect information on their combat performance.

[6]READ THE ARTICLE

[7]

Centrifuges at an enrichment facility in Iran. (Credit: Tasnim News Agency)

Table | [8]Iran’s Centrifuges: Models and Status

Iran has developed and deployed advanced centrifuge models that can enrich
greater amounts of uranium using fewer machines relative to its original
IR-1 design. Since September 2022, Iran completed the installation of nine
cascades of IR-2m centrifuges and one cascade of IR-4 centrifuges at
Natanz. Iran’s increasing mastery of centrifuge design and operation raises
the risk of a "breakout" toward the development of a nuclear weapon and
reflects an acquisition of knowledge that cannot be reversed.

[9]VIEW THE TABLE

ENTITIES OF CONCERN

In September, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned five Iranian
entities involved in the production of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and
the shipment of weapons to Russia.

[10]Aero Engines Design and Manufacturing Company

A company that specializes in building air-breathing engines for airplanes,
helicopters, and drones; a subsidiary of the [11]Iran Aviation Industries
Organization (IAIO); customers have included the [12]Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps (IRGC) and the [13]Aerospace Industries Organization (AIO).

[14]LEARN MORE

[15]Paravar Pars Company

An Iran-based company that produces light and ultra-light aircraft; was
involved in the research, development, and production of the Shahed-171 UAV
for the [16]IRGC Aerospace Force; is closely associated with [17]Imam
Hussein University (IHU), an IRGC-controlled institution.

[18]LEARN MORE

[19]Baharestan Kish Company

An Iran-based company involved in the manufacture of UAVs; has worked on
components for Shahed-series UAVs for the [20]IRGC; company officials
include [21]Rahmatollah Heidari.

[22]LEARN MORE

IN THE NEWS

[23]

The Qaem-100 space launch vehicle shortly before liftoff. (Credit:
Screenshot from IRIB news broadcast)

[24]Iran Begins 60% Uranium Enrichment in Fordow | Tasnim News Agency

November 22, 2022: Iran's nuclear agency announced it has begun enriching
uranium up to 60 percent purity at its underground Fordow site for the
first time. Previously Iran had been enriching to 60 percent only at the
Natanz site. The agency also stated its intent to replace first generation
centrifuges at Fordow with the more advanced IR-6 machines and to install
an additional eight cascades there.

[25]Iran Will Help Russia Build Drones for Ukraine War, Western Officials
Say | Washington Post

November 19, 2022: Russia and Iran have reached an agreement to manufacture
inexpensive weaponized drones in Russia, according to unnamed security
officials. The two countries are preparing to transfer designs and
components to allow production to begin within months.

[26]Iran Revolutionary Guard Launches Rocket Amid More Protests |
Associated Press

November 5, 2022: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)
successfully launched a new solid-fueled space rocket. Iran claims that the
rocket, called the Qaem-100, will be able to put an 80-kilogram payload
into a 500-kilometer orbit. The head of the IRGC Aerospace Force Amir Ali
Hajizadeh said that the rocket would soon be used to place a Nahid
satellite into orbit.

FROM THE LIBRARY

At its quarterly meeting, the IAEA board of governors adopted a
[27]resolution condemning Iran for failing to meet its safeguards
obligations.
* Ahead of the meeting, the IAEA issued two new reports on Iran’s
[28]compliance with the JCPOA and its [29]NPT safeguards commitments -
November 10.
* In his introductory remarks, the IAEA Director General [30]expressed
serious concern that there has been no progress in clarifying the Agency’s
questions about the presence of nuclear material at three undeclared sites
in Iran - November 16.
* In a [31]joint statement, France, Germany, the United States, and the
United Kingdom welcomed the adoption of the resolution censuring Iran, the
second in less than a year - November 18.
* Iran’s ambassador in Vienna [32]called the resolution “political” and
“unconstructive” - November 17.

In November, the European Union, the United States, and other Western
countries sanctioned Iranian entities involved in human rights abuses,
military support to Russia, and sanctions evasion.
* The European Union [33]added 29 individuals and three organizations to
its list of entities subject to a travel ban and asset freeze because of
their involvement in the violent crackdown against protestors in Iran -
November 14.
* The [34]European Union, [35]United States, [36]Canada, and
[37]Switzerland imposed sanctions on Iranian entities involved in the
production and transfer of drones to Russia - November 14, 15, 16, and 2.
* The United States designated two separate sanctions-evasion networks,
one [38]facilitating oil sales to generate revenue for Hezbollah and the
IRGC and the other [39]engaging in illicit petrochemical sales to East Asia
- November 3 and 17.

Iran engaged in several aggressive actions beyond its borders.
* On November 8, U.S. Navy forces [40]intercepted a fishing vessel
smuggling more than 70 tons of explosive material from Iran to Yemen -
November 15.
* Iran’s ongoing missile and drone attacks against the Kurdistan region
of Iraq have prompted two [41]statements of [42]condemnation from the U.S.
Department of State - November 14 and 22.
* After a kamikaze drone struck the Pacific Zircon tanker on November 15,
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan [43]issued a statement blaming
Iran. An analysis by the U.S. Navy later [44]confirmed that the vessel was
hit by an Iranian Shahed-136 UAV - November 16 and 22.

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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