Iran is rich in uranium at the Isfahan complex, the UN nuclear agency believes
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Most of Iran’s most enriched uranium may still be at its Isfahan nuclear site, which was hit by airstrikes last year and has suffered the worst attack in this year’s US-Israeli war, the head of the UN nuclear agency told the Associated Press.
Rafael Grossi said in an interview on Tuesday that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has satellite images showing the latest results of US-Israeli airstrikes against Iran and that “we continue to receive information.”
IAEA inspections ended in Isfahan when Israel last June launched a 12-day war in which the United States bombed three Iranian nuclear sites.
The UN believes that most of Iran’s highly enriched uranium was stored there “at the time of the 12-day war, and has been there ever since,” Grossi said.
Airbus satellite images show a truck loaded with 18 green containers entering a tunnel at the Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center on June 9, 2025, shortly before the start of that war. Those vessels, believed to contain highly enriched uranium, are probably still there.
Grossi said the IAEA could not “verify or deny that the material exists,” and also wanted to inspect Iran’s nuclear facilities in Natanz and Fordo.
Iran is a party to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which is under five-year review at UN headquarters. Under its provisions, Iran is required to open its nuclear facilities to inspections by the IAEA, Grossi said.
Iran wants to postpone the nuclear talks
Iran has 440.9 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 percent, which is a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90 percent, according to the agency. Grossi said the IAEA believed that about 200 kilograms were stored in Isfahan.
The Iranian stockpile could allow the country to build up to 10 nuclear bombs, if it decides to implement its program, Grossi told the AP last year, if Iran chooses to rush the bomb.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the US will seize Iran’s supply of enriched uranium if Iran does not voluntarily deliver, calling the nuclear-armed country “non-negotiable.” His comments come as Washington and Tehran agreed to a two-week truce that will see a temporary cessation of hostilities between the countries and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping.
Tehran has long insisted that its nuclear program is peaceful. President Donald Trump said that one of the main reasons why the United States went to war was to deny Iran the ability to make nuclear weapons, as he emphasized that the strikes last June “turned off” the country’s atomic program.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News Channel this week that preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon “remains a critical issue” that must be addressed.
Asked if he thought the Iranians were willing to make a deal, Rubio said they are skilled negotiators who want to buy time and that any deal must be one that “absolutely prevents them from running toward a nuclear weapon at any time.”
Grossi said the IAEA has discussed with Russia and others about removing Iran’s most enriched uranium from the country – a complex task that would require a political agreement or a major US military operation in a hostile environment.
Grossi said the IAEA participated in the last round of US-Iran nuclear talks in February but was not part of the latest ceasefire talks negotiated by Pakistan. He said the organization had held talks separately with the US and informally with Iran.
The latest proposal from Iran would postpone talks on its nuclear program but end interference in the Strait of Hormuz, a key sea route for oil and natural gas exports, if the US lifts its embargo and ends the war.
Grossi said that in any political agreement, a full IAEA inspection of Iran’s nuclear facilities must be carried out.
