Most of Iran’s stockpile of highly-enriched uranium remains buried under tons of rubble at sites that were bombed in Israeli and U.S. airstrikes during June’s 12-day war, according to the head of the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog group.
On Wednesday, Director General Rafael Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency told the Swiss newspaper Le Temps that Iran still holds about 400 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60% — just short of weapons-grade level — at the targeted nuclear facilities at Isfahan, Natanz and Fordo.
“The damage … was severe, but even though [U.S. President] Trump talks about ‘obliteration,’ Iran’s technical know-how hasn’t vanished,” Mr. Grossi said. “Its centrifuges, which can be used to enrich uranium, can also be rebuilt.”
The IAEA chief said there’s no evidence that Tehran intends to construct an atomic bomb, but acknowledged that Tehran has sufficient enriched uranium for at least 10 nuclear bombs.
“The IAEA inspected those sites just before the Israeli strikes. Since then, we’ve been monitoring them through satellite imagery,” Mr. Grossi said. “Countries tracking Iran’s program have reached the same conclusions as we have.”
Satellite imagery from late September and early October shows recent or ongoing activity at two of the three tunnel entrances to the Isfahan complex. However, it doesn’t indicate a rush by Iran to remove centrifuges or enriched uranium stocks from inside the nuclear facility, according to the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security.
“It points more towards preparing controlled and secure access to two of the three tunnel entrances, and hardening the entrances and utilities against future strikes,” the think tank recently said in a statement.
A researcher at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies said Mr. Grossi’s comments reaffirm the publicly reported findings from the U.S. and Israel that Iran’s enriched uranium stocks likely remain buried in the destroyed sites.
“Should [Iran] attempt to recover and relocate the stocks, Tehran would be gambling on whether those two countries will militarily act to stop the regime,” said Andrea Stricker, deputy director of FDD’s non-proliferation and bio-defense program. “Moreover, Israel’s strikes prior to the U.S. bombing dealt major blows to Iran’s ability to weaponize the fuel and construct nuclear weapons anytime soon.”
Neither the U.S. nor Israel has issued public statements about the damage done to the Isfahan complex by dozens of Tomahawk missiles used to attack the tunnel entrances. It is in contrast to Fordow, where U.S. officials presented detailed information about the bombing of the site, the Institute for Science and International Security said.
“A question is whether more damaging Joint Multiple Effects Warhead System warheads were included on the Tomahawk missiles that struck Isfahan,” institute officials said. “These relatively newer warheads have blast-fragmentation capabilities and increased penetration capabilities, giving them much greater bunker-busting capabilities against hardened targets, compared to standard high-explosive warheads.”
On Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran won’t return to any nuclear negotiations with Washington as long as the Trump administration continues its policy of “excessive demands.” He said the previous talks about Iran’s nuclear program collapsed due to “Washington’s overreach.”
“We have shown we are always committed to diplomatic solutions, but this does not mean giving up the rights of the Iranian people,” Mr. Araghchi told the state-controlled Iranian Students’ News Agency. “Whenever the interests of the Iranian people and the higher interests of the country can be secured through diplomacy, we have acted. But, we are dealing with those who have never adhered to diplomacy.”
The IAEA said Iran is allowing only a small number of inspectors to check its nuclear sites. The government stated that the limits are being imposed due to security concerns, which Mr. Grossi said he understands.
“After the 12-Day war, Iran could have cut ties with the international community, withdrawn from the Non-Proliferation Treaty, and become a pariah state like North Korea. It didn’t [and] I commend that choice,” Mr. Grossi said. “But if diplomacy fails, I fear a renewed resort to force.”
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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