(NewsNation) — The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said the United States did not completely destroy Iran’s nuclear program, and that Tehran could likely begin enriching uranium in “months,” rather than decades, as the White House has said.
Rafael Mariano Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, made the comments during a recorded interview with CBS on Friday.
“They can have, you know, in a matter of months, I would say, a few cascades of centrifuges spinning and producing enriched uranium, or less than that,” Grossi said.
It’s a timeline that sharply contrasts with that of the Trump administration, which maintains it “obliterated” Tehran’s nuclear ambitions when the U.S. attacked three nuclear sites in “Operation Midnight Hammer.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi last Thursday said the strikes dealt “serious damage,” and the Israel Atomic Energy Commission said Iran’s capabilities were set back “many years.”
But U.S. lawmakers remained divided about the White House’s word choice following clblockified briefings on the attacks.
“Their operational capability was obliterated. There is nobody working there tonight. It was highly effective. There’s no reason to hit those sites anytime soon,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., following the Senate’s Thursday briefing.
Democrats were skeptical and criticized Trump for not providing Congress with more information. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said the briefing “raised more questions than it answered.”
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said the strike appears to “have only set back the Iranian nuclear program by a handful of months.”
NewsNation’s Anna Kutz contributed to this report.
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