Iran Ready to Enrich Uranium Up to Bomb-Grade Levels: "We Can Do That"
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Iran can now enrich uranium up to the 90 percent level required for nuclear weapons even though it has no desire to build them, a prominent member of the Iranian parliament said following Israeli and U.S. attacks on its nuclear program.
Newsweek has reached out to the U.S. State Department and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for comment.
Why It Matters
The comments highlight Iran's toughened stance on enrichment following the Israeli and U.S. strikes targeting its nuclear facilities. Since the strikes, Iran and the United States have showed no interest in immediate diplomatic talks, raising the prospect that Iran will seek to accelerate its nuclear program — though questions remain over its ability to do so after the damage caused by the attacks.
People burn the representations of the U.S. and Israeli flags as a poster of the late Iranian revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini is held at right during the funeral ceremony of Iranian armed forces generals, nuclear...
People burn the representations of the U.S. and Israeli flags as a poster of the late Iranian revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini is held at right during the funeral ceremony of Iranian armed forces generals, nuclear scientists and their family members killed in a 12-day war with Israel, in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 28, 2025. More
Vahid Salemi/AP Photo
What To Know
Going forward, Iran will enrich uranium according to its needs at any levels and without abiding by conditions, according to Alaeddin Boroujerdi's statements on Iranian TV, multiple Iranian media reported.
"Iran may need to enrich uranium to 90% purity for fuel to power its ocean liner. We can do that. The only red line is the atomic bomb," the senior member of the Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission was quoted as saying by the UK-based Iran International English outlet. He described U.S. President Donald Trump's demands for zero enrichment as a "delusion".
It is unclear to what extent the damage at Iran's underground nuclear facilities, acknowledged by Tehran, affected the program's development.
Trump and administration officials have spoken of the "obliteration" of Iran's nuclear program by the attack but the leader of the IAEA Rafael Grossi estimated the setback for Iran was a matter of "months."
The IAEA had assessed that Iran, enriching uranium at 60 percent, was close to the 90 percent level needed for weapons grade. The UN watchdog had also expressed concerns over undeclared nuclear material and activities, accusing Iran of failing to co-operate on implementing the Non-Proliferation Treaty Safeguards Agreement.
Iranian MP Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a senior member of the Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, stated:
'From now on, we will enrich uranium as needed without accepting any conditions. For example, we may need 90% enrichment for ocean-going ships, and we can… pic.twitter.com/am8mIcA8tu — OSINTWarfare (@OSINTWarfare) July 1, 2025
Disputing the findings, the Iranian parliament called for suspending cooperation with IAEA inspectors, citing political bias. Iran says its nuclear program is for civilian purposes.
"There has never been weapons-grade enrichment in Iran. Please, you can go through the reports by the IAEA and show me one single clue or evidence of Iran's nuclear program deviating from peaceful purposes," Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baqaei was quoted as saying by Iranian media on Monday.
Iran says its nuclear program is for civilian purposes. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had previously stated that he believes religion prohibits the development and use of nuclear weapons.
What People Are Saying
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters in Florida on Tuesday: "We had tremendous success with Iran... They're so bombed out. That place was decimated. It'll be years before anyone can even get down there."
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS News: "We have also gone through 12 days of imposed war; therefore, people will not easily back down from enrichment."
Israel's Ambassador to France Joshua Zarka told the Associated Press in June: "They were killed not because of the fact that they knew physics, but because of the fight that they were personally involved in, the creation and the fabrication and the production of (a) nuclear weapon."
What Happens Next
While Iran may seek to accelerate its nuclear program, its ability to do so depends on the extent of damage done. If it were to do so, it could also face further attacks. Italy and Oman, which hosted previous U.S.-Iran nuclear talks, are working on reviving the negotiations.
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