The Iranian president has ordered the country's scientists to start planning the development of nuclear marine propulsion in response to what he called the United States' violation of last year’s nuclear agreement between Tehran and world powers.
The White House reacted to news of President Hassan Rohani's order by saying on December 13 that the move does not violate Iran's nuclear deal.
In a letter published by the state-run IRNA news agency on December 13, Hassan Rohani told Iran's Atomic Energy Organization to start work on "planning the design and production of fuel and nuclear power plants for maritime transport.”
Rohani also ordered the Foreign Ministry to prepare a legal complaint to the international committee that oversees the nuclear accord.
Under the agreement signed in July 2015, six world powers agreed to lift sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran's nuclear program.
But U.S. lawmakers recently voted a 10-year extension of legislation that would allow the United States to impose other sanctions against Iran, drawing ire from Tehran.
U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to sign the measure in the coming days.