(JTA) — Iran has begun shutting down centrifuges for nuclear enrichment as part of the nuclear deal between the Islamic Republic and the world powers.

The head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Ali Akbar Salehi, said Monday on a visit to Japan that Iran had begun the preliminary work toward taking the centrifuges offline, according to local media. He said it would take about two months to reduce the number of working centrifuges at the at Natanz and Fordow nuclear plants from 19,000 to 6,000.

In exchange for the decommission of the centrifuges, the world powers will lift international economic sanctions against Iran under the nuclear deal reached in July between Iran and six world powers. The shutting down of the centrifuges must be verified by the nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Iran’s Parliament last month voted to implement the nuclear deal, called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, by a vote of 161 in favor and 59 against, with 13 abstentions.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service – if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.