In an effort to disgrace lame duck president Donald Trump in his final days in office, Iran has flouted its previous commitments to refrain from refining uranium above 20% purity, a level it agreed to in the Obama Administration-negotiated nuclear agreement, the Associated Press reports.

The Iranian military also seized a South Korean-flagged oil tanker as it transited near the Strait of Hormuz, further escalating tensions with the West.  Last week, a limpet mine was found on Liberian-flagged tanker anchored off Basra, Iraq, an action suspected to have been done by Iranian military personnel.

Iran’s leadership said its actions were designed to encourage the parties who violated the multinational nuclear agreement to come back in compliance.  In 2018, the Trump Administration violated terms of the 2015 nuclear agreement even through it had certified that Iran was in compliance.

“Our measures are fully reversible upon FULL compliance by ALL,” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted in a swipe at Trump. 

Iran notified the International Atomic Energy Agency last week that it would start to enrich uranium above the 20% threshold set by the 2015 agreement.  It reportedly brought back on-line a number of centrifuges that were previous disabled as part of the deal.

The Iranian government also said it seized the South Korean tanker because it was polluting the waters around the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil supply travels.