Latest news with #IR-1
Memri
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Memri
Former Iranian Nuclear Chief Ali-Akbar Salehi on Iran's Growing Domestic Nuclear Capabilities: Iran Now Produces IR-9 Centrifuges, Expanding Nuclear Facilities Nationwide; Needs 100 Tons of Uranium fo
In a June 4, 2025 interview on IRINN TV (Iran), former Iranian nuclear chief Ali-Akbar Salehi discussed the progress of Iran's nuclear program amid ongoing challenges with international cooperation. He said that while China initially helped Iran begin uranium mining, around 30 years ago Iran also launched a project with China at the Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF), but the Chinese abandoned it halfway through. According to Salehi, the chairman of the China Atomic Energy Authority claimed that the United States pressured China to exit Iran's nuclear program after the JCPOA was signed, but Iran ultimately completed the project on its own. Salehi went on to describe Iran's turbulent nuclear cooperation with Russia, noting that Russia is currently building two new power plants in Bushehr. He explained that while Iran uses imported fuel for foreign-made reactors, it still requires domestically manufactured fuel - which in turn requires 100 tons of natural uranium - for its domestically built reactors. Emphasizing Iran's growing domestic capabilities, Salehi stated that the country is now producing its own centrifuges and has reached the IR-9 model, which is 50 times more powerful than the IR-1. He also discussed ongoing plans to expand nuclear facilities across the country.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - Bad mistake: Tulsi Gabbard just threw Iran a nuclear lifeline
Tulsi Gabbard should check her 'Iran Nuke' Signal group — if such a thing exists or existed. Why? Because Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appears to have entered the group chat and has led her astray. Testifying Tuesday before the Senate Intelligence Committee, President Trump's director of national intelligence said the intelligence community 'continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Khamanei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003.' Khamenei is undoubtedly thrilled with this. His regime is in tatters. His so-called 'Axis of Resistance' — Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and a host of other militias — has been badly mauled by Israel in the wake of the Oct. 7. attacks. And yet here is Gabbard, throwing a lifeline to Khamenei's nuclear weapons program and doing so in the most public of ways. This is a classic case of ignoring the sum of the parts that do indeed add up to the whole — and in this case, the whole is that Iran is aggressively chasing weaponization of its nuclear program to re-establish strategic deterrence. Gabbard needs to remember that her job is not intelligence gathering. The mission of her office is to lead and support intelligence integration, delivering insights, driving capabilities, and investing in the future. In that sense — and please excuse the cliché — if it walks like a nuclear duck, quacks like a nuclear duck, then it is a nuclear duck. Gabbard is, wittingly or not, failing to process all of the intelligence collected. Consider that Iran is rapidly accelerating its stockpiles of highly enriched uranium. The International Atomic Energy Agency now estimates as of February 8, Tehran has amassed '274.8 kilograms of uranium enriched up to 60 percent.' Bear in mind that nuclear power plants, hospital experiments, and other common commercial uses of low-enriched uranium only require enrichment levels between 3 percent and 5 percent. The only reason to highly enrich uranium past 5 percent is to begin the process of weaponizing it. To create a mushroom cloud, 90 percent entriched uranium is required. But it also requires a sufficient mass of enriched uranium to sustain a chain reaction that results in a nuclear implosion. Last December, Iran Watch estimated that Khamenei's 'nuclear program has reached the point at which, within about one week, [it] might be able to enrich enough uranium for five fission weapons.' Given Iran's ever-increasing centrifuge capacity — the key manufacturing component of enriching uranium — that volume will only exponentially increase. It is important to emphasize that Iran already has this capability. As Iran Watch noted, Tehran is operating at least '36 cascades of IR-1 centrifuges as well as 30 cascades of more powerful centrifuges (15 IR-2m cascades, 12 IR-4 cascades, and three IR-6 cascades) at the Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant.' Iran Watch also reported that Khamenei is operating at least 'six cascades of IR-1 centrifuges and two cascades of IR-6 centrifuges at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant and nearly a thousand centrifuges at the Natanz pilot plant, notably the IR-4 and IR-6.' Significantly, these are just the known nuclear sites in Iran. In October 2024, Israel during its retaliatory strikes on Iran, destroyed the Taleghan 2 nuclear facility — an undeclared Iranian nuclear facility. Others undoubtedly exist. Israel likely already knows their locations. Iran is effective in hiding its nuclear weapons program. In February, Fox News Digital reported that 'Iran's chief nuclear development agency, the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research, has been operating out two locations previously recognized as space development and launch sites.' These include space facilities in Shahrud and Semnan. Gabbard surely knew this before she began testifying. Weaponization not only requires sufficient stockpiles of 90 percent enriched uranium — the equivalent mass of two fifty-pounds bags of dog food is needed for one nuke — but also warheads, ballistic missiles, propulsion fuels and launch pads or vehicles. These are nuclear red flags that Gabbard cannot overlook. Gabbard needs to bring Team Trump's policy approach up to speed vis-à-vis Iran's nuclear weapons program. This notion that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon is nonsense — or it is intentional parsing, in the full knowledge that that is exactly what Khamenei is intent upon doing. Either way, it is deceptive. Iran is pursuing or already building all of the components needed to construct, deliver and launch nuclear weapons. It would be foolish from a national security standpoint to wait until Tehran either tests or launches a nuke before connecting all of these obvious dots. Even the IAEA is sounding the warning bells. Rafael Grossi, its director, warned about Khamenei's intentions in February when he said, 'Iran is the only non-nuclear weapon state enriching to this level, causing me serious concern.' There are signs that others in the Trump Administration are recognizing the magnitude of this rapidly growing threat. The War Zone reported on Tuesday that 'a significant force of B-2 Spirit stealth bombers looks to be currently wending its way to the [strategically located] Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia.' Earlier, on Sunday while appearing on CBS Face The Nation, Mike Waltz, Trump's national security advisor, warned Iran to 'give [its nuclear weapons program] up or there will be consequences.' But Gabbard said they were not building a nuclear weapon. That said, saying 'don't' did not work for the Biden Administration. It won't work for Team Trump, either. In all likelihood, Iran will stand down only if militarily forced to do so. Khamenei is playing a deeper and longer-term game. He and his regime know that unless Iran becomes a nuclear power, its ambitions of dominating the Middle East will be a lost cause. Gabbard had a chance during the Senate committee hearing to send a signal that it is indeed a lost cause, full stop. Instead, inexplicably, she fumbled, becoming the latest person in Washington to give Iran a nuclear weapons lifeline. Team Trump must reverse course. As we have warned before, we are past midnight in the Gardens of Armageddon and Israel will not wait forever before it acts to mitigate or destroy Khamenei's nuclear weapons program. Mark Toth writes on national security and foreign policy. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan E. Sweet served 30 years as an Army intelligence officer. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
27-03-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Bad mistake: Tulsi Gabbard just threw Iran a nuclear lifeline
Tulsi Gabbard should check her 'Iran Nuke' Signal group — if such a thing exists or existed. Why? Because Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appears to have entered the group chat and has led her astray. Testifying Tuesday before the Senate Intelligence Committee, President Trump's director of national intelligence said the intelligence community 'continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Khamanei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003.' Khamenei is undoubtedly thrilled with this. His regime is in tatters. His so-called 'Axis of Resistance' — Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and a host of other militias — has been badly mauled by Israel in the wake of the Oct. 7. attacks. And yet here is Gabbard, throwing a lifeline to Khamenei's nuclear weapons program and doing so in the most public of ways. This is a classic case of ignoring the sum of the parts that do indeed add up to the whole — and in this case, the whole is that Iran is aggressively chasing weaponization of its nuclear program to re-establish strategic deterrence. Gabbard needs to remember that her job is not intelligence gathering. The mission of her office is to lead and support intelligence integration, delivering insights, driving capabilities, and investing in the future. In that sense — and please excuse the cliché — if it walks like a nuclear duck, quacks like a nuclear duck, then it is a nuclear duck. Gabbard is, wittingly or not, failing to process all of the intelligence collected. Consider that Iran is rapidly accelerating its stockpiles of highly enriched uranium. The International Atomic Energy Agency now estimates as of February 8, Tehran has amassed '274.8 kilograms of uranium enriched up to 60 percent.' Bear in mind that nuclear power plants, hospital experiments, and other common commercial uses of low-enriched uranium only require enrichment levels between 3 percent and 5 percent. The only reason to highly enrich uranium past 5 percent is to begin the process of weaponizing it. To create a mushroom cloud, 90 percent entriched uranium is required. But it also requires a sufficient mass of enriched uranium to sustain a chain reaction that results in a nuclear implosion. Last December, Iran Watch estimated that Khamenei's 'nuclear program has reached the point at which, within about one week, [it] might be able to enrich enough uranium for five fission weapons.' Given Iran's ever-increasing centrifuge capacity — the key manufacturing component of enriching uranium — that volume will only exponentially increase. It is important to emphasize that Iran already has this capability. As Iran Watch noted, Tehran is operating at least '36 cascades of IR-1 centrifuges as well as 30 cascades of more powerful centrifuges (15 IR-2m cascades, 12 IR-4 cascades, and three IR-6 cascades) at the Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant.' Iran Watch also reported that Khamenei is operating at least 'six cascades of IR-1 centrifuges and two cascades of IR-6 centrifuges at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant and nearly a thousand centrifuges at the Natanz pilot plant, notably the IR-4 and IR-6.' Significantly, these are just the known nuclear sites in Iran. In October 2024, Israel during its retaliatory strikes on Iran, destroyed the Taleghan 2 nuclear facility — an undeclared Iranian nuclear facility. Others undoubtedly exist. Israel likely already knows their locations. Iran is effective in hiding its nuclear weapons program. In February, Fox News Digital reported that 'Iran's chief nuclear development agency, the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research, has been operating out two locations previously recognized as space development and launch sites.' These include space facilities in Shahrud and Semnan. Gabbard surely knew this before she began testifying. Weaponization not only requires sufficient stockpiles of 90 percent enriched uranium — the equivalent mass of two fifty-pounds bags of dog food is needed for one nuke — but also warheads, ballistic missiles, propulsion fuels and launch pads or vehicles. These are nuclear red flags that Gabbard cannot overlook. Gabbard needs to bring Team Trump's policy approach up to speed vis-à-vis Iran's nuclear weapons program. This notion that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon is nonsense — or it is intentional parsing, in the full knowledge that that is exactly what Khamenei is intent upon doing. Either way, it is deceptive. Iran is pursuing or already building all of the components needed to construct, deliver and launch nuclear weapons. It would be foolish from a national security standpoint to wait until Tehran either tests or launches a nuke before connecting all of these obvious dots. Even the IAEA is sounding the warning bells. Rafael Grossi, its director, warned about Khamenei's intentions in February when he said, 'Iran is the only non-nuclear weapon state enriching to this level, causing me serious concern.' There are signs that others in the Trump Administration are recognizing the magnitude of this rapidly growing threat. The War Zone reported on Tuesday that 'a significant force of B-2 Spirit stealth bombers looks to be currently wending its way to the [strategically located] Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia.' Earlier, on Sunday while appearing on CBS Face The Nation, Mike Waltz, Trump's national security advisor, warned Iran to 'give [its nuclear weapons program] up or there will be consequences.' But Gabbard said they were not building a nuclear weapon. That said, saying 'don't' did not work for the Biden Administration. It won't work for Team Trump, either. In all likelihood, Iran will stand down only if militarily forced to do so. Khamenei is playing a deeper and longer-term game. He and his regime know that unless Iran becomes a nuclear power, its ambitions of dominating the Middle East will be a lost cause. Gabbard had a chance during the Senate committee hearing to send a signal that it is indeed a lost cause, full stop. Instead, inexplicably, she fumbled, becoming the latest person in Washington to give Iran a nuclear weapons lifeline. Team Trump must reverse course. As we have warned before, we are past midnight in the Gardens of Armageddon and Israel will not wait forever before it acts to mitigate or destroy Khamenei's nuclear weapons program.
Al Jazeera
06-02-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Where does Trump's renewed ‘maximum pressure' leave any Iran-US deal?
Tehran, Iran – United States President Donald Trump has quickly restarted his pressure campaign against Iran while emphasising he does not want Tehran to have a nuclear weapon. Iranian authorities have unsurprisingly signalled they do not intend to capitulate, and that the country's official policy of not pursuing a nuclear bomb remains in place, but they have left room for dialogue. Let's take a look at the complex state of play almost seven years after Trump initially embarked on the path of 'maximum pressure', a policy that Tehran maintains has been a failure. What did Trump say about Iran in the White House? Trump claimed on Tuesday that he was reluctant – for unstated reasons – to greenlight a new pressure campaign on Iran, but nevertheless promised to drive Iranian oil sanctions to 'zero'. At the same time, he stressed that his only priority is that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon. Asked about alleged Iranian attempts to have him killed in retaliation for ordering the assassination of top general Qassem Soleimani in 2020, Trump said he has left instructions for Iran to be 'obliterated' if he himself is taken out. On Tuesday, the US president signed a national security presidential memorandum to enforce his restored maximum pressure on Iran policy. The memorandum lacked many details on what 'maximum pressure' would entail, but Trump hinted that the measures would be tough, saying he was 'torn' and 'unhappy' about signing it, and adding that he hoped 'that it's not going to have to be used in any great measure at all'. In May 2018, during his first term in office, Trump unilaterally abandoned Iran's nuclear deal with world powers that limited Tehran's nuclear programme in exchange for a removal of some sanctions and a suspension of others. 'Nuclear peace agreement' In a post on his Truth Social account, the US president said he wants Iran to be a great and successful country, but one without nuclear weapons. 'Reports that the United States, working in conjunction with Israel, is going to blow Iran into smithereens, ARE GREATLY EXAGGERATED,' the post reads. He also touted a 'nuclear peace agreement' that would lead to celebrations across the Middle East. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the landmark accord signed between Iran and the P5+1 (US, China, Russia, United Kingdom, France and Germany) in 2015 after years of negotiations, put tough limits on Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of United Nations sanctions. It put a uranium enrichment cap of 3.67 percent on Iran, vastly restricted its stockpile of low-enriched uranium, limited deployment of centrifuges to first-generation IR-1 models, and converted the key Fordow enrichment plant into a research centre. It also introduced heavy water and plutonium restrictions, banned new enrichment facilities, and envisioned one of the most stringent nuclear inspection regimes worldwide. Trump, cheered on by Israel and its Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, unilaterally withdrew from the deal without offering a replacement, and imposed the harshest-ever US sanctions on Iran. What more pressure can Washington apply? The sweeping sanctions imposed during Trump's first term encompassed the entire Iranian economy, and did not let up even during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Iran was hit particularly hard. Former US President Joe Biden's administration also piled on the sanctions, but was constantly accused by its Republican rivals of being lax in enforcement as it engaged in indirect talks to revive the JCPOA – which has since remained comatose but not officially dead. A major sunset clause of the accord expires in October this year, stripping the US and the European Union of an ability to quickly bring back United Nations sanctions by activating a 'snapback' mechanism of the JCPOA. The Iranian economy, which was beginning to stabilise after partial relief provided by the nuclear accord, has been thrown into a yearslong turmoil by the sanctions. Tens of millions of average Iranians continue to see their purchasing power dwindle by the day amid rampant inflation, with the national currency hitting new lows of about 840,000 rials per US dollar in the open market this week. That rate was lower than 40,000 rials per US dollar before the sanctions. Iran continues to deal with a lingering energy crisis that has seen sporadic shutdowns of key services across the country, and that has heavily contributed to dangerous levels of air pollution, especially in the capital. But the Trump team appears set on slashing billions more from Iranian coffers through rigorous enforcement of Washington's sanctions regime, and imposing new designations. Potential plans could include targeting the so-called 'ghost fleet' of Iranian-managed ships, which often operate with their transponders off, flying other states' flags and registered in third countries in order to discretely transport crude oil. It could even mean the US seizing more vessels, something Iran has branded as 'piracy' and has retaliated against by also confiscating vessels. Washington is also likely considering greater pressure on China, since it has remained the largest buyer of Iranian oil for years. But as Trump signals he is ready for another trade war with Beijing, his plans to drive Iranian crude exports to 'zero' look far-fetched. What is Iran signalling? Iran has one of the largest proven oil reserves in the world, and is a founding member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which represents some of the world's biggest oil producers. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday urged OPEC members to unite against possible US sanctions in a meeting with the organisation's chief in Tehran. The centrist president, who won an election in July after the death of his hardline predecessor Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, also said that his administration would try to deepen ties with neighbours and other partners to weather the sanctions. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said if Trump only wanted an Iran without a nuclear bomb, then that is 'achievable and not a difficult matter'. Mohammad Eslami, Iran's nuclear chief, said Trump's insistence against a bomb was 'stating the obvious'. 'We have declared that we are not pursuing and will not pursue nuclear weapons, and we remain engaged' with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he said. Government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani did not specifically comment about the possibility of direct talks with the US, or a Pezeshian-Trump meeting, only saying Tehran's foreign policy is based on 'three principles of dignity, wisdom and expediency'. After years of retaliating against Israeli sabotage attacks on its nuclear facilities and Western-backed censure resolutions issued by the board of the IAEA, Iran is now enriching uranium up to 60 percent, a short technical step to the above 90 percent required for a bomb. It also has enough fissile material for multiple bombs, according to the global nuclear watchdog and Western intelligence, but has not made any effort to actually build a nuclear weapon. Last month, Iranian diplomats participated in consultations with European powers aimed at achieving an understanding about the nuclear issue and more, with both sides agreeing they will hold more talks soon. In the aftermath of the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad in Syria and the blow it dealt to the Tehran-led 'Axis of Resistance', Iran's armed forces have been holding large-scale military exercises, which are expected to continue during the coming weeks. The drills have predominantly focused on air defence, but have also included the unveiling of offensive capabilities, like an underground missile base including a range of projectiles capable of reaching Israel, a new drone carrier, and speedboats capable of carrying anti-ship missiles.
