US President Donald Trump has escalated threats against Tehran, warning that time was “running out” for a nuclear deal
Western intelligence agencies see no indication that Iran is enriching uranium for “bomb-grade material,” the New York Times has reported, citing sources. While activity has been detected at nuclear sites, including those damaged by last year’s strikes, no high-level enrichment is underway, the report claims.
Last summer, the US and Israel carried out coordinated strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, justifying the campaign as preventing Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons – an ambition Iran denies. The attacks targeted the Fordow and Natanz enrichment plants and the Isfahan research center.
In its report published on Thursday, the NYT claimed uranium buried at the struck sites – material closest to weapons-grade levels – remains in place. Work at the sites appears limited to excavation aimed at creating more secure facilities. No new nuclear sites have been detected, though limited activity has been observed at two incomplete sites near Natanz and Isfahan, according to the paper.
Trump claimed the strikes “obliterated” Iran’s enrichment capacity, but according to the newly released US National Defense Strategy, they only “significantly degraded” the program. Sources told the NYT that Iran could restart centrifuges in two months and reach bomb-grade enrichment in up to a year once it retrieves its buried fuel.
Trump has escalated threats against Iran this week, shifting from condemning its response to anti-government protests – framed by Tehran as a foreign-backed insurrection – to issuing nuclear ultimatums. On Wednesday, he announced a “massive armada” was heading toward Iran, ready to use “violence” unless Tehran negotiates a nuclear deal. On Friday, Trump said he had set a deadline for the talks, warning cryptically: “If we don’t make a deal, we’ll see what happens.”
Iran responded defiantly, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying Tehran was “ready for war” and would consider US proposals for negotiations only if the military threat was removed.
“Negotiations cannot take place under the shadow of threats,” he stated in Istanbul on Friday, while on a visit to explore a possible mediation initiative.
Iran’s top security chief, Ali Larijani, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Friday, reportedly to discuss Trump’s threats.
Moscow has urged the US to avoid military action in Iran and pursue negotiations, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warning this week that “any forceful actions can only create chaos in the region,” and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov saying Russia was ready to help defuse tensions and facilitate talks.
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