US Officials Say Iran Could Make A Fissile For One Nuclear Bomb In 12 Days

JAKARTA - Iran can make enough fissile for one nuclear bomb in about 12 days, a top US Defense Department official said Tuesday, less than the one year expected when the 2015 Iran nuclear deal went into effect.

Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl said at a hearing in the US House of Representatives when pressed by Republican lawmakers, why President Joe Biden's Administration is seeking to revive the agreement, officially named the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

"Because Iran's nuclear progress since we left the JCPOA has been tremendous. In 2018, when the previous administration decided to leave the JCPOA, it took Iran about 12 months to produce one bomb's worth of fissile material. Now it only takes about 12 days," Kahl said to lawmakers, reported Reuters on March 1.

"So, I think there's still a view that if you can resolve this issue diplomatically and curtail their nuclear program, that's better than any other option. But right now, the JCPOA is on ice," Kahl added.

US officials have repeatedly estimated how long it would take Iran to get the fissile material for a bomb if they decided to do so, in a matter of weeks, but not as specifically as Kahl said.

Although US officials say Iran is getting closer to producing fissile material, they do not believe Iran has mastered the technology to actually make a bomb.

Under the 2015 deal, which US President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018, Iran had limited its nuclear program in return for relief from economic sanctions from world powers.

Trump subsequently reimposed US sanctions on Iran, getting Tehran to resume previously banned nuclear work and reviving US, European and Israeli fears of Tehran building an atomic bomb. Meanwhile, Iran has denied any ambition to have such weapons.