The head of the UN nuclear watchdog said Iran has the ability to start enriching uranium again (possibly a possible bomb).
Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said The United States strikes on three Iranian websites The serious but “complete” losses were caused last weekend, which contradicted Donald Trump’s claim that Iran’s nuclear facilities were “completely eliminated”.
“Frankly, people can’t claim that everything is gone, there’s nothing there,” Grossi said on Saturday.
Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear and military sites on June 13, claiming Iran is close to building nuclear weapons. Later, the United States joined the strike and dropped bombs on three nuclear facilities in Iran: Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan.
Since then, the true extent of the damage is not yet clear.
Grossi told the BBC’s U.S. media partner CBS News on Saturday that Tehran could have “rotated in months… months of centrifuge spinning and producing abundant uranium.”
He added that Iran still has “industrial and technical capabilities…so if they want, they will be able to start doing this again.”
The IAEA is not the first to suggest Iran’s nuclear energy can continue – earlier this week, Pentagon Intelligence Assessment The U.S. strike was found to have the program reset within only a few months.
Trump refuted wildly by announcing Iran’s nuclear ruins had been “completely destroyed” and accused the media of “trying to devalue one of the most successful military strikes in history.”
Currently, Iran and Israel have agreed to a ceasefire.
But Trump said He will “absolutely” consider bombing Iran again If intelligence finds it can enrich uranium to the relevant level.
On the other hand, Iran has sent a contradictory message about how much damage it has caused.
In a speech Thursday, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the strike did not make any significant difference. However, its Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the damage has been caused.
Iran has further challenged its relations with the IAA on Wednesday, when its parliament suspended its cooperation with the Atom Observatory, accusing the IAEA of siding with Israel and the U.S. siding.
Two countries attacked Iran after UN bodies last month Tehran is found to be in violation Its non-proliferation obligations for the first time in 20 years.
Iran insists that its nuclear program is peaceful and is for civilian use only.
Although Iran refuses to work with his organization, Grossi said he hopes he can still negotiate with Tehran.
“I have to sit down with Iran to investigate this because at the end of the day, after the military strike, it will have to have a lasting solution, which is just a diplomatic solution,” he said.
Under the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, Iran does not allow enrichment of uranium to more than 3.67% – the level required for commercial nuclear power plant fuel – and does not allow any enrichment at its Fordo plant within 15 years.
However, Trump abandoned the deal in his first term in 2018, saying that halting the path to bombs and restoring U.S. sanctions have little effect.
Iran retaliates through increasingly breach of restrictions, especially those related to enrichment. According to IAEA, it restored Fordo’s enrichment in 2021 and accumulated enough 60% enriched uranium to potentially create nine nuclear bombs.
