Iran’s Near Bomb-Grade Uranium Stockpile Grows by a Record
An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps near the Bushehr nuclear power plant, Iran.
Photographer: Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Iran manufactured a record volume of uranium enriched just below the levels needed for nuclear weapons, complicating efforts to negotiate a peaceful resolution to international concerns over the Islamic Republic’s atomic ambitions.
In its first report since US President Donald Trump’s administration began negotiations with Tehran, the International Atomic Energy Agency said its accumulation of highly-enriched uranium rose by almost 50% to 409 kilograms (902 pounds) over the last three months. That volume of material could quickly be enriched to form the core of about 10 nuclear bombs, should Iran choose to pursue weapons.