IRAN can ready the materials for a nuclear weapon in just eight weeks and Washington was just minutes away from a war with Tehran in 2019, an expert claims.
The US and Iran held indirect talks earlier this week as they try to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - a framework designed to curb Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
Trita Parsi told The Sun that Iran and the US were just minutes from conflict in 2019In 2015, Tehran had agreed to limit its nuclear development in exchange for the removal of "crippling" sanctions, but the agreement was torpedoed under former President Trump as the US withdrew in 2018.
Tensions between Tehran and Washington rose after years of "maximum pressure” pursued by Trump, which culminated in the assassination of top general Qasem Soleimani in January 2020.
Trita Parsi, the Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, told The Sun: “The US and Iran had several moments in mid-to-late 2019 when they were only minutes away from war.
“When Trump killed Soleimani, the Iranians responded and both sides backed off. It was pure luck that it didn’t escalate further.
“US intelligence got notice of Iranian missiles coming in at about two hours time. They made sure people were evacuated and put in bunkers."
High-profile military officials involved in the decision-making at the time reportedly told Parsi that the US would’ve taken further action against Iran had an American died.
The expert said the Iranians would’ve retaliated, sparking a full-scale military war.
Parsi said the Iranians are further ahead in their nuclear program as the country's stockpile of uranium enriched to 60 percent purity stands at 17.7kg, according to the latest International Atomic Energy Agency report published last month.
It is one level below weapons-grade and the quantity is up from 10kg at the time of the last report in August.
Around 20kg is sufficient for a bomb, sparking fears it could be reached within months.
Parsi warned: “The breakout capability – meaning the amount of time it would take for them to have the materials ready for a nuclear weapon – is now somewhere between eight and 12 weeks.”
Israel has called on global leaders not to “give in” to Iran’s “blackmail”.
US envoy Robert Malley told BBC Sounds: “If Iran thinks it can use this time to build more leverage and then come back and say they want something better it simply won't work.
“If that's Iran's approach, which is to try to use the negotiations as a cover for an accelerated nuclear program, and as I say, drag its feet at the nuclear table, we will have to respond in a way that is not our preference.”
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