‘Iran not far from having a nuclear bomb,’ warns UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Mariano Grossi, warned on Wednesday that Iran is not far off from making its own nuclear weapons.

The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) arrived in Tehran for talks with senior officials after indicating that Iran is no longer far from achieving full nuclear weapons capability, despite not yet officially possessing a nuclear bomb.

Speaking to the French daily Le Monde ahead of his scheduled visit to Tehran in an exclusive interview, Grossi said, “Iran does not currently have a nuclear weapon, but it is very close to reaching that point.”

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Grossi emphasised that Iran has already developed all the technical components necessary to construct a nuclear bomb. “It’s no longer sufficient for Tehran to merely tell the international community that its uranium enrichment programme is for peaceful purposes,” he said. 
“Such claims must now be substantiated with action and verified transparency.”

On the possibility of Tehran obtaining nuclear weapons, Grossi told French daily Le Monde, “It’s like a jigsaw puzzle, they have the pieces and one day they can put it all together. There is a way to go to achieve this. But they are not far from it, we have to accept that. In the last four years, we have seen a remarkable acceleration in Iran in this area.”

Emphasizing that the IAEA should be included in the dialogue process between Iran and the US on Iran’s nuclear activities, Grossi said, “They know that we will have to give our opinion on a possible agreement because it will be up to us to check up on it.”

Grossi is set to hold talks with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation, Mohammad Eslami.

The visit comes at a sensitive time amid escalating international concerns over Tehran’s nuclear trajectory. 
The IAEA chief’s remarks mark one of the strongest warnings yet about Iran’s potential to become a nuclear-armed state, underscoring the urgency of renewed diplomacy and concrete de-escalation measures.

Grossi’s visit is expected to focus on restoring the agency’s access to nuclear sites, verifying Iran’s uranium enrichment levels, and ensuring transparency in Iran’s atomic programme.

The international community, particularly signatories to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), remains deeply alarmed by Iran’s growing stockpile of highly enriched uranium and its refusal to fully cooperate with IAEA monitoring efforts.