United Nations nuclear watchdog head, Rafael Grossi said Iran could be producing enriched uranium in a few months, sparking speculation about how effective the United States' strikes to destroy Iran’s nuclear program have been.
According to U.S. officials, their strikes obliterated key sites in Iran, and President Donald Trump said they would consider bombing Iran again if enriched uranium reached worrying levels.
"The capacities they have are there. They can have, you know, in a matter of months, I would say, a few cascades of centrifuges spinning and producing enriched uranium, or less than that," Grossi told CBS News in an interview.
This comes after Israel launched attacks on Iran earlier this month to prevent them from developing any nuclear weapons.
The U.S. eventually joined the 12-day war, with Donald Trump bombing Iran and announcing a ceasefire.
Grossi said that while the strikes significantly set back Iran’s ability to convert and enrich uranium, the country has gained plenty of knowledge, meaning that despite the bombings being a major setback, the advancements are permanent.
"Iran is a very sophisticated country in terms of nuclear technology," Grossi said.
"So you cannot disinvent this. You cannot undo the knowledge that you have or the capacities that you have."
Trump told a Fox News reporter that sanctions could be removed if they agreed to move forward in a peaceful manner.
“We have the sanctions,” he said.
“But if they do what they have to, if they can be peaceful and if they show us that they won't do any more damage, I would revoke them, and it would make a big difference.”
The U.S. President also said he turned down Iran’s uranium enrichment request during negotiations and defended his decision to bomb Iran’s nuclear power plant.
"Iran cannot have the nuclear weapon and they were weeks away from having it,” Trump said.
According to The Washington Post, U.S. officials obtained an intercepted phone call between Iranian officials appearing to suggest the government in Tehran believes the U.S. strikes were less devastating than expected.
