President Trump asserted that Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facilities were “completely and totally obliterated” by American strikes. But this month, Iran claimed that it had another enrichment site “in a secure and invulnerable location,” with installation of centrifuges to begin immediately.
The announcement, by the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Mohammad Eslami, came on June 12 — immediately after Iran was censured by the International Atomic Energy Agency’s board of governors for failing to meet its obligations for transparency under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
“The new site is fully constructed and located in a secure, invulnerable location,” Mr. Eslami said. “As soon as centrifuge installation and setup are complete, enrichment will begin.”
His announcement was a surprise, and so far there has been no confirmation of his claim nor any official indication of where any new site would be. Western intelligence agencies have not assessed the veracity of the claim, and there was little public reaction to his assertion from the International Atomic Energy Agency or foreign governments.
The site has been under construction for several years, and Iran has not given the agency access to it. “They are telling us, ‘It’s none of your business,’” the agency’s head, Rafael M. Grossi, told reporters in April.
Presumably this new site, which would have been Iran’s third, is also underground, like the Fordo and Natanz sites bombed overnight. But it is not clear whether any centrifuges have already been installed there, or even if it is as ready as Mr. Eslami said it was.
David Albright, of the Institute for Science and International Security, has written that the new site is likely south of Natanz, under Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La, a mountain nearly a mile above sea level — and which is nearly a half-mile taller than Fordo mountain.
The site appears to be meant for large-scale centrifuge installation, Mr. Albright said. If operational with the newest centrifuges, Mr. Albright judged that Iran could produce enough highly enriched uranium for 19 nuclear weapons within three months.
Iran also announced then, as part of its response, that it would replace older centrifuges at Fordo with the most modern type, but again, it is not clear whether it had done so before the bombing.
From: New York Times