Following the Israeli and US airstrikes on key nuclear facilities in Iran, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief, Rafael Grossi, has admitted that more than 400 kilograms of enriched uranium remains unaccounted for. Grossi emphasized during an interview with CBS that the agency does not know where the material could be, or if part of it was destroyed during the 12-day attack period. The uranium, enriched to 60% purity, could theoretically be used to create over nine nuclear weapons if further enriched to 90%.
The Israel launched an attack on Iran on June 13, claiming it was on the brink of building a nuclear weapon—a claim that had been denied by both the IAEA and US intelligence. On June 22, the US joined the Israeli campaign by striking Iran’s Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear facilities. Tehran vehemently denied the allegations and retaliated to the attacks. The conflict ended in a US-brokered ceasefire, which has so far been upheld.
Grossi has stated that despite the Israeli-US bombing campaign and significant damage to Iran’s nuclear facilities, Tehran may still be capable of restarting its uranium enrichment operations within a matter of months. He noted that the knowledge possessed by Iran cannot be ‘disinvented.’ This assertion is supported by former IAEA inspector Olli Heinonen, who warned that the process of confirming the uranium’s fate will be lengthy and arduous, involving forensics and environmental sampling. Heinonen warned that some of the material may be ‘inaccessible, distributed under the rubble or lost during the bombing.’
Meanwhile, Iran has suspended cooperation with the IAEA and rejected Grossi’s request to inspect the damaged sites, including Fordow. The Iranian parliament voted last week to end the country’s compliance with routine monitoring under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, citing the agency’s failure to prevent ‘unlawful’ military action. US President Donald Trump has denied that Iran was able to relocate any uranium before the strikes, suggesting it was ‘very dangerous’ and ‘very hard’ to do. He also claimed that the Iranians didn’t move anything because they were trying to save themselves from the attack.