Overview
- U.S. intelligence, in reporting tied to coverage published Saturday, says Tehran deliberately collapsed underground passageways and planted explosive mines at access points to sites that hold its highly enriched uranium.
- Most of the stockpile is believed concentrated at the Isfahan complex, with estimates across sources ranging from several hundred pounds to roughly 1,000 pounds of roughly 60% enriched uranium, which is close to weapons capability.
- The Pentagon drew up a mid‑May plan to seize the material by force but abandoned the operation as too risky, and U.S. officials now prefer a negotiated transfer for destruction and removal.
- U.S. negotiators are reported to be nearing a political framework under which Iran would surrender the HEU for on-site neutralization and export, but technical talks remain to settle excavation, de‑mining, processing and verification steps.
- Specialist removal would likely use NNSA mobile processing systems from Oak Ridge and take weeks under hazardous conditions, a reality that could let Iran claim portions are inaccessible and prolong diplomatic and technical work with real human safety risks for technicians.