Let's Get Real About Iran's History With Nuclear Enriched Uranium

 Nadene Goldfoot                                       

       Iran's Shahab-3 Ballistic Missile   The U.S. supplied the TNRC with highly enriched uranium to fuel the Tehran Research Reactor, establishing the foundational nuclear infrastructure that Iran later expanded during the 1970s.  Is this why inspectors had a hard time entering and doing their job of inspecting?  Do you realize what they could do with this missile that can go non-stop from Iran to Israel?  They could put an atomic bomb in the nose of it.  What a way to deliver an atomic bomb!!!

Iran’s nuclear program began in 1957 under the U.S. "Atoms for Peace" program, leading to the 1967 launch of the Tehran Research Reactor, initially fueled with highly enriched uranium . In 1957, the United States and Iran signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement under President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s "Atoms for Peace" program. This pact marked the official beginning of Iran's nuclear program , paving the way for the U.S. to supply Iran with nuclear research materials, technology, and a 5-megawatt reactor.

Iran signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1968 and established the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) in 1974 to pursue a full domestic fuel cycle. According to official U.S. assessments, Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in late 2003. This program's goal, according to U.S. officials and the IAEA, was to develop an implosion-style nuclear weapon for Iran's Shahab-3 ballistic missile. A 2025 public U.S. intelligence assessment stated that "Iran is not building a nuclear weapon" and that the now-former Supreme Leader had "not reauthorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003." IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi stated on March 4, 2026, that the agency "never had information indicating that there was a structured systematic [Iranian] program to build or to construct a nuclear weapon."

    Netanyhu at UN Conference showing the timeline of Iran having material for bomb. Addressing the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu points to a red line he drew on a graphic of a bomb. Netanyahu is known as a fan of such visual aids. 9/28/2012 .  

Israel and the US did not agree on the condition of Iran's uranium and what they have in mind for it.  Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) make frequent, ongoing trips to Iran's nuclear facilities under its ongoing safeguards commitments, rather than a single visit. However, Iran has blocked inspectors from accessing specific facilities or withdrawn cooperation multiple times over decades of disputes.

Prior to the 2025 War: The IAEA repeatedly condemned Iran for refusing to grant inspector access to undeclared sites suspected of covert nuclear activities, most notably in standoffs around 2020 and 2023. 

Post-2025 Military Strikes: Following the June 2025 war, Iran suspended overall cooperation with the IAEA . While it allowed inspectors to visit some unaffected facilities, it consistently blocked IAEA access to bombed installations like Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan . 

The United States and Iran signed an interim 14-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) that explicitly requires Iran's nuclear activities and materials to be supervised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The deal paves the way for 60 days of talks to "down-blend" stockpiles of enriched uranium.  This is for today.  

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Raffael Grossi speaks to the media on the opening day of his agency’s quarterly Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, Austria, June 8, 2026. REUTERS/Elisabeth Mandl Purchase Licensing Rights.

TOKYO, June 26 (Reuters) - The interim U.S.-Iran peace accord gives U.N. nuclear inspectors access to Iran, the watchdog's top official said ​on Friday, after Tehran indicated key sites would remain off-limits ‌until a final deal with Washington was reached and sanctions lifted.

The United States and Israel conducted a series of joint strikes on Iranian nuclear and uranium enrichment facilities beginning in June 2025 and escalating in March 2026. 

Fordo: B-2 Spirit bombers dropped bunker-buster bombs, leaving significant craters and blocked tunnel entrances .

Natanz & Isfahan: High-resolution imagery shows large craters and damaged overground structures and perimeter fences following the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes.

The U.S. and Iran last week signed a memorandum of understanding paving the ​way for 60 days of talks to resolve thornier ​issues, including those related to Iran's nuclear programme. Iran's ⁠deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Wednesday there were ​no plans to grant access to inspectors.  This must be the MoU.  This is the position the world has to accept about uranium in Iran's hands today.  

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi speaks during a news conference at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, Japan, on Wednesday.Kyodo News/via AP Iran says only after final deal is done can anyone inspect  Iranian nuclear enrichment sites  with his inspectors.

What America helped Iran to make is now being used against us and Israel as threats hanging  over our heads.  

Resource:

https://www.brookings.edu/articles/sixty-years-of-atoms-for-peace-and-irans-nuclear-program/

https://www.npr.org/2026/06/24/g-s1-129770/iran-nuclear-inspection