CIA: US strikes set Iran's nuclear program back years
Kyiv • UNN
CIA Director John Ratcliffe stated that thanks to US strikes, Iran's only metal processing plant was destroyed, setting Tehran's nuclear program back years. Most of the enriched uranium remains under the rubble at facilities in Isfahan and Fordow.
Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John Ratcliffe told skeptical American lawmakers that US military strikes destroyed a single metal processing facility in Iran and dealt a huge blow to Tehran's nuclear program, which would take years to overcome. This is reported by UNN with reference to The Washington Times, which quotes an unnamed American official who was present at non-public congressional hearings.
Details
It is noted that during the hearings, Ratcliffe reported that Iran's only metal processing plant was destroyed and enormous damage was inflicted on Tehran's nuclear program, which would take years to overcome.
Ratcliffe also told lawmakers that intelligence estimates suggest the vast majority of Iran's accumulated enriched uranium likely remains buried under rubble in Isfahan and Fordo, two of the three key nuclear facilities targeted by US strikes.
According to the authors of the article, the metal processing plant, which Ratcliffe said was destroyed, was located at the nuclear facility in Isfahan.
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Context
Recently, CNN, citing US intelligence data, which was reported by three unnamed individuals, reported that US military strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the main components of Tehran's nuclear program and likely only set it back by a few months.
President Donald Trump insists that Iran's nuclear facilities were set back by "decades" due to US strikes.
In turn, US President Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, stated that Iran's nuclear program is almost impossible to restore after US strikes, and it will take years to do so.