US says strikes hit key Iranian nuclear sites; Trump warns of more bombing if uranium enrichment escalates
\n Washington
\nIran could be producing enriched uranium in a few months, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog Rafael Grossi was quoted as saying on Sunday, raising doubts about how effective US strikes to destroy Tehran\u2019s nuclear programme have been.
\nUS officials have stated that their strikes obliterated key nuclear sites in Iran, although US President Donald Trump said on Friday he would consider bombing Iran again if Tehran is enriching uranium to worrisome levels.
\n\u201cThe capacities they have are there. They can have, you know, in a matter of months, I would say, a few cascades of centrifuges spinning and producing enriched uranium, or less than that,\u201d Grossi told CBS News in an interview.
\n\u201cFrankly speaking, one cannot claim that everything has disappeared and there is nothing there,\u201d he added, according to the transcript of an interview on \u201cFace the Nation\u201d with Margaret Brennan due to air on Sunday.
\nSaying it wanted to remove any chance of Tehran developing nuclear weapons, Israel launched attacks on Iran earlier this month, igniting a 12-day air war that the US eventually joined.
\nIran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes only.
\nGrossi, who heads the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, said the strikes on sites in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan had significantly set back Iran\u2019s ability to convert and enrich uranium.
\nHowever, Western powers stress that Iran\u2019s nuclear advances provide it with an irreversible knowledge gain, suggesting that while losing experts or facilities may slow progress, the advances are permanent.
\n\u201cIran is a very sophisticated country in terms of nuclear technology,\u201d Grossi said. \u201cSo you cannot disinvent this. You cannot undo the knowledge that you have or the capacities that you have.\u201d
\nGrossi was also asked about reports of Iran moving its stock of highly enriched uranium in the run-up to the US strikes and said it was not clear where that material was.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
US says strikes hit key Iranian nuclear sites; Trump warns of more bombing if uranium enrichment escalates Washington Iran could be producing enriched uranium in a few months, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog Rafael Grossi was quoted as saying on Sunday, raising doubts about how effective US strikes to destroy Tehran\u2019s nuclear programme […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":487425,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-487401","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n