Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium remains buried beneath damaged nuclear sites months after US and Israeli air strikes, leaving Washington and its allies facing a tough choice: try to secure the material or risk having it eventually recovered.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the material, estimated at about 440 kilograms, enriched up to 60 percent, was still out of reach.
“Our nuclear facilities were attacked, and everything is under debris,” he told cbs. “Right now, we don’t have any plans. We don’t have any plans to rescue them from under the debris.”
US officials are considering options to deal with the stockpile, which remains one of the most sensitive unresolved issues in the conflict. President Donald Trump has said that preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons is a central objective, but indicated that seizing the material is not an immediate priority.
“We’re not focused on that, but we may be at some point,” Trump said. told fox news.
The material is believed to be located at deeply buried facilities, including sites in Isfahan and Natanz, which were attacked last year. Any operation would require securing the area, excavating damaged tunnels, and safely handling radioactive material under threat of attack.
Urgency reflects the nature of the store itself. While up to 60 percent has been enriched, which is below the 90 percent typically considered weapons-grade, experts say most of the technical work has already been done. If Iran wishes to proceed further, additional enrichment to weapons-grade levels will require relatively limited time and capacity.
Before the attacks, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had estimated that Iran’s stockpile at that level represented a significant portion of the country’s total enrichment work. The remaining weapons-grade phaseout is comparatively small, analysts say.
At present, Iran says it has no plans to retrieve the materials. Araghchi said any future reforms would happen only under international monitoring. “If one day we come to the conclusion of doing that, it will be under the agency’s supervision,” he said.
Nevertheless, the presence of the reserves is shaping strategic considerations in Washington. Officials have also raised the possibility of leaving the material in place, warning Tehran against any efforts to restart enrichment.
In the global context of nuclear markets, enrichment capacity is already under pressure. US domestic utilities currently face a potential supply gap as demand for nuclear power increases and reliance on Russian enrichment services is set to end at the end of this decade.
Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU) CEO Amir Wexler warned that existing capacity may not be enough even for existing reactors.
“It is my firm belief that there is a gap between supply and demand in the current market,” Wexler said. told the Financial Times.
A parallel example is emerging in West Africa, where Niger’s military government is holding on to about 1,000 metric tons of uranium seized from a French-run mine.
Materials stored at a military base in Niamey have already become a security concern after being targeted in an attack by Islamic State militants earlier this year. Niger has said it intends to sell the uranium despite ongoing legal disputes and geopolitical pressure.
“We can sell to whoever we want,” said Mining Minister Osman Abarchi. “We’re talking to the Russians. We’re talking to the Chinese. We’re talking to the Americans.”
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource For real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Gian Liguid, do not have any direct investment interest in any of the companies mentioned in this article.
