WASHINGTON: Iran is capable of producing enough uranium enriched to 19.75 percent to fuel a medical research reactor, but would face some hurdles, the Institute for Science and International Security said Monday.

ISIS experts David Albright and Jaqueline Shire”s report on a website supported Iran”s own claim and contradicted French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, who said Tehran has no such capacity.

The Islamic republic said it needs the fuel for a research reactor in Tehran that makes radioisotopes for medical purposes such as cancer treatment.

“Though Iran may encounter some challenges, it is technically equipped to produce 19.75 percent enriched uranium at the Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant,” Albright and Shire wrote.

They noted that anything under 20 percent is considered Light Enriched Uranium (LEU), while anything over is High Enriched Uranium (HEU).

As of November last year, the experts said, Iran had accumulated over 1,800 kilograms (3,960 pounds) of LEU enriched to around 3.5 percent, but it is suspected that Iran has now acquired 2,000 kilograms of LEU.

Iran needs only “about 200 kilograms of 3.5 percent enriched uranium to make 20 kilograms of 19.75 percent enriched uranium, more than enough to fuel the TRR (Tehran Research Reactor) each year,” the experts said.