On the same day it announced these new nuclear reactors, which are being built in conjunction with Russia, Iran announced it would be filing papers accusing the United States of "crimes against humanity."
The new nuclear moves are rattling congressional Iran hawks, who have been critical of a series of waivers issued by the Trump administration permitting Iran to continue engaging in nuclear research, including at an underground site that once housed the regime's nuclear weapons program.
It remains unclear if the Trump administration will move to block this activity and sanction any international company that aids Iran in the construction of the new nuclear reactors.
"If the State Department is even considering waivers for Iran to expand its nuclear program, if those are even a little bit in play, you have to ask yourself what else is already a done deal and why that isn't public yet," one veteran Republican official, reflecting the views of many Iran hawks, told the Washington Free Beacon.
"You also have to ask yourself if the State Department knows that Republicans won the last presidential election or whether we're all just going to pretend it's Obama's third term and the Iran deal is still in place," the source said.
Ali Salehi, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, announced on Monday that construction of the two new nuclear plants have begun in the southern Iranian city of Bushehr.
