Iran has intensified fortification of facilities where its highly enriched uranium reserves are stored in recent weeks, making any attempts to recover them significantly more difficult, according to CNN reports.
According to sources cited by US media, accessing about half a ton of enriched uranium has now become much more complicated, dangerous and time-consuming than it was just a month ago. The situation comes at a time when former US President Donald Trump had left open the possibility of a military operation to seize the material.
The new fortifications are also reportedly directly affecting negotiations between Washington and Tehran over the reduction and destruction of Iran's uranium stockpile. A US official said the parties were close to an agreement that would see the enriched material delivered for destruction to a third country, but details remain unclear and often contradictory.
The uranium issue remains a key sticking point, tied to broader regional tensions and the situation in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has reportedly made any transfer scenario significantly more difficult, making the process technically and logistically very complex.
Nuclear security experts say that, if the information is accurate, any operation to extract the material would be extremely complicated. Former US official Scott Roecker said the situation would “certainly complicate” any attempt to recover the enriched uranium.
According to estimates by the international community, part of the reserves are located in damaged or closed tunnels at the Isfahan nuclear complex, an area that has long been considered of strategic importance for the Iranian nuclear program.
The reports also reinforce concerns that Iran could use the situation to create uncertainty over the quantity and location of its reserves, making international verification more difficult.
In this context, any possible operation to transport or destroy the material would require specialized equipment and considerable time, while Donald Trump himself has previously stated that such a process could take at least two weeks.
