Iran's Uranium Defense
Iran seals uranium depot and places mines fearing US material confiscation.
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Iran has sealed a key uranium depot and planted explosive mines around its entrance, according to CNN, taking drastic steps to stop the United States from seizing its stockpile of 440.9 kg of uranium enriched to 60% — enough, the IAEA warns, to theoretically build up to 10 nuclear bombs. The move comes after President Trump rejected a JSOC plan involving Delta Force and SEAL Team 6 to physically retrieve the material, calling the risk "extreme."
Iran deliberately collapsed access tunnels and placed explosive mines at the site, CNN reported. If triggered, the blasts could release toxic UF6 gas — uranium hexafluoride — causing massive radioactive contamination across the Isfahan and Natanz regions.
Iran's 'Fortress' Strategy to Block U.S. Seizure
The sealing operation accelerated after May 19, 2026, when General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, left a NATO summit in Brussels to brief Trump on a high-risk ground mission to enter Iran and grab the uranium, CNN reported. Trump paused the plan, admitting publicly on June 4 that he turned it down. "Nadie se acerca a eso porque está enterrado bajo una montaña," he said — nobody gets near it because it is buried under a mountain.
Iran's Supreme Leader issued a direct order: no nuclear material leaves Iranian soil. Military analysts described the proposed U.S. ground mission as potentially the largest special forces operation in history, requiring thousands of troops and a temporary runway built inside Iran just to fly out containment equipment, CNN reported.
IAEA Locked Out, Stockpile Grows Harder to Verify
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi warned that inspectors have had no access to Iranian nuclear sites since June 2025. The agency now relies only on satellite images to track the 440.9 kg stockpile. On June 10, the IAEA Board of Governors censured Iran in a 21-to-3 vote — with Russia, China, and Niger voting against — for failing to account for the material, CNN reported.
Geopolitical analysts say the mining of tunnels is a strategic move by Tehran. Even if a peace deal is reached, it will take weeks of heavy excavation and mine-clearing to reach the uranium. The IAEA fears the permanent loss of what it calls "continuity of knowledge" — a clear, verified record of where the material is and how much exists.
Two Years of Strikes That Left Uranium in the Rubble
The crisis traces back to June 2025, when the U.S. and Israel launched Operation Midnight Hammer. B-2 bombers dropped 14 GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs on Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The strikes set Iran's nuclear program back roughly two years — but left enriched uranium stockpiles buried underground, not destroyed, according to CNN.
A second wave of strikes followed in February 2026. The conflict has since killed an estimated 3,000 people in Iran. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi insists the uranium must be "diluted inside Iran" and demands the release of $24 billion in frozen assets as part of any deal, CNN reported.
Oil at $110 and a Negotiation Deadlock With No End
The standoff has pushed oil prices to $108–$110 per barrel. A closure of the Strait of Hormuz could drive prices toward $150, analysts warn. Trump has said the U.S. is ready to destroy the uranium "with or without the cooperation of Iran," calling it "nuclear dust." But physically eliminating or seizing the material now looks far harder than before, CNN reported.
Iran rejects any plan to move the uranium to a third country, such as Russia. Pakistan has tried to broker an "Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding," but Israel continues to push the U.S. for physical removal rather than dilution. With mines in the tunnels and tunnels in collapse, both sides appear stuck, CNN reported.
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