Iran Could Be Ready to Build Nuclear Bombs Within Weeks - State Secretary Blinken

Following moves by Iran to remove limits on uranium enrichment at its nuclear facilities, the country may be just "a matter of weeks" away from accumulating enough fissile material to build its first nuclear warhead — according to the new U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Iran took steps to increase uranium enrichment in response to the U.S. withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal and subsequent imposition of harsh unilateral economic sanctions on Tehran. Iranian officials have repeatedly threatened to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the only legal restriction on its development of nuclear weapons, should American economic pressure not be relaxed. Conflict with the United States, Israel and other nuclear armed Western powers have led to calls within Iran to develop a nuclear deterrent.

Secretary Blinken’s concerns follow Israeli reports from early 2020 that Iran could have enough uranium for its first warhead by the end of 2020. The Joe Biden administrations’ apparent eagerness to refocus foreign policy attentions towards East Asia and away from the Middle East are thought to have influenced its willingness to return to the JCPOA, although Iran itself has rejected calls for unilateral concessions. Washington’s European allies have notably called for a revision of the JCPOA which would include more parties in the deal and impose Western drafted limitations on Iran’s development of a ballistic missile deterrent, although Iran itself has firmly rejected such calls. Iran notably has a considerable arsenal of ballistic missiles largely of North Korean origin which could potentially be used to deliver nuclear warheads such as the Musudan and Shahab-3.