JERUSALEM — A prominent U.S. research institute dedicated to monitoring Iran’s illicit nuclear weapons program has released a concerning report just ahead of this weekend’s U.S.-Iran negotiations, warning that Tehran’s atomic weapons system has reached a perilously advanced stage.
The Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Science and International Security has titled its alarming report, “The Iran Threat Geiger Counter: Extreme Danger Grows.”
According to the findings, “Since February 2024, the date of its last report, the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program has significantly escalated. Major concerning factors include Iran’s enhanced nuclear weapon capabilities, reduced timelines for developing nuclear weapons, and the increasing normalization of internal discussions within Iran advocating for nuclear armament.
“The likelihood of Iran choosing to pursue nuclear weapons has been amplified by ongoing military conflicts in the Middle East, where Iran and its proxy forces are engaged against Israel and its allies, a conflict in which Iran is facing setbacks. The precarious security landscape is now coupled with the perception, if not the reality, that Iran is gearing up to develop nuclear weapons.
On Wednesday, President Donald Trump stated, “We have a little time, but we don’t have much time, because we’re not going to allow them to acquire a nuclear weapon. We can’t permit them to have a nuclear weapon.” He emphasized, “I’m not asking for much. I just — I don’t — they cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
When questioned about the possibility of military action should Iran fail to reach a nuclear agreement, Trump responded, “Absolutely.”
“If it requires military intervention, we will pursue military options,” the president told reporters at the White House. “Israel will undoubtedly play a significant role in that. They will take the lead. But ultimately, we make our own decisions.”
Trump withdrew from the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal—the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action—in 2018, arguing that the agreement did not effectively prevent Tehran from advancing its nuclear weapons ambitions.
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A state-controlled Iranian news agency claimed on Monday that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s purported fatwa against nuclear weapons does not prohibit their production but forbids their use. Fox News Digital attempted to acquire a copy of the alleged religious decree from Iran, but officials have thus far declined to provide it. Experts on Iran have suggested that the fatwa may not exist.
The Institute for Science and International Security report further cautioned that “Iran still holds military assets that pose threats to the region. It has vast stockpiles of drones, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles that can be deployed against Israel and its allies. Additionally, Iran remains a significant player in the Ukraine conflict, supporting Russia with substantial arms supplies, including drones and missiles.”
The mouthpiece of Iran’s Khamenei—the anti-American publication Kayhan—recently incited the assassination of Trump.
A spokesperson for the State Department told Fox News Digital, “Threatening rhetoric from the Iranian regime or its representatives against the President, or any American, is ill-advised.”
Iran’s regime has attempted to carry out assassinations of Iranian American dissidents on U.S. soil.
