The head of the UN’s nuclear watchdog has said that Iran retains the capability to resume uranium enrichment within months, raising doubts over US President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that recent strikes had completely dismantled Tehran’s nuclear infrastructure.
Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that while the United States’ strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities caused “severe damage,” they did not eliminate the core infrastructure of the programme.
“The capacities they have are there,” Grossi remarked. “They can have, in a matter of months, a few cascades of centrifuges spinning and producing enriched uranium… One cannot claim that everything has disappeared.”
His remarks come amid a wider debate over the extent of the damage inflicted by US strikes launched earlier this month during a 12-day conflict between Iran and Israel. The conflict began when Israel launched a surprise offensive, citing efforts to disrupt Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons development. The United States later joined the campaign, targeting three key nuclear sites in Iran.
While President Trump has insisted that the operation had “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear programme, international and American officials have offered a more cautious assessment. Several lawmakers briefed on the matter acknowledged that while some facilities were hit, the elimination of all nuclear materials was never part of the stated military objective.
Grossi also emphasised the need for renewed international oversight and urged Tehran to restore cooperation with the IAEA, which has seen its access curtailed since the strikes.
“Until recently, we had good visibility into their declared facilities,” he said. “But there were issues left unanswered — like the presence of uranium traces at undeclared sites, for which Iran had not provided credible explanations.”
The IAEA has long sought answers regarding uranium particles discovered at multiple locations that are not part of Iran’s officially declared nuclear programme. Grossi reiterated that while Iran had not declared a nuclear weapons programme, its lack of transparency raised serious questions.
“We didn’t see a programme aiming directly at weapons,” he clarified. “But at the same time, there were very important questions they weren’t answering.”
The initial assessments by US defence and intelligence agencies also suggested that some enriched uranium may have been relocated ahead of the strikes — a possibility Iranian officials alluded to in private communications, according to Western diplomatic sources. However, President Trump has publicly dismissed this, insisting that no material was moved prior to the attacks.
Grossi did not confirm whether material had been transferred but indicated that such a scenario could not be ruled out. “It’s logical to presume that when a country announces protective measures, it may include moving sensitive materials,” he said.
The IAEA chief warned against overconfidence in the aftermath of the strikes. “This hourglass approach to dealing with weapons of mass destruction is not a good idea,” he said, warning that Iran’s industrial and technological capacities could be reactivated swiftly if political will allowed it.
In a sign of growing unease, Tehran has recently taken steps to reduce its cooperation with international monitoring agencies, raising concerns about further escalation and the erosion of oversight mechanisms that were previously established under the 2015 nuclear agreement.
Grossi concluded by urging diplomacy and caution. “In such sensitive areas, the only sustainable way forward is through verification, transparency, and dialogue,” he said.
Officials in Washington have so far not formally responded to Grossi’s latest remarks. However, a senior US official, when asked about the interview, reiterated the administration’s belief that significant damage was inflicted during the strikes. “The difference between Iran’s nuclear programme before and after the operation is night and day,” the official said.
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