IAEA Assessment of Iran Nuclear Program
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) released an 11‑page restricted document stating that it cannot verify the location or status of Iran’s near‑bomb‑grade uranium stockpile because Iranian authorities continue to block international inspectors from accessing nuclear facilities. IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi described the lack of information as a "matter of proliferation concern" and urged Iran to allow inspectors back in "with the utmost urgency."
The report notes that the last confirmed quantities of nuclear material at Iran’s sites were 440.9 kilograms of highly enriched uranium (HEU) and 8,599.6 kilograms of low‑enriched uranium (LEU), observed at the damaged plants in Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz. Inspections of Iran’s nuclear program dropped by more than half in the previous year after Iran imposed new restrictions following a 12‑day conflict in which the United States and Israel attacked those nuclear sites. Monitors have not returned to the damaged facilities since the attacks.
The IAEA indicated that inspectors are scheduled to visit Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant in mid‑September. Meanwhile, the agency’s board of governors will meet next week in Vienna to consider a new censure resolution against Iran.
The document also references heightened regional tensions: the United States launched a new wave of strikes against targets in Iran, and the first clashes in about a month occurred on a Monday, with neither side willing to resume peace talks. Oil prices have risen this year due to disruptions at the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit point for energy supplies, underscoring the broader market implications of the unresolved nuclear and geopolitical dispute.