United States President Donald Trump said in a Time magazine interview published on Friday that he didn’t stop Israel from hitting Iran’s nuclear sites, but did make it uncomfortable for them to do so.”I think we can make a deal without the attack. I hope we can. It’s possible we’ll have to attack because Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. But I didn’t make it comfortable for them [Israel], but I didn’t say no. Ultimately, I was going to leave that choice to them, but I said I would much prefer a deal than bombs being dropped,” he explained. When asked whether he is open to meeting Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei or President Masoud Pezeshkian, Trump shortly answered: “Sure.”
NN: the moment of truth is coming
Iran is beefing up two deeply buried tunnel complexes – linked to its main nuclear complex – with a massive security perimeter. Commercial satellite imagery shows defence construction around the base of Mt Kolang Gaz La, located south of the Natanz enrichment complex. The satellite images, taken on March 29, showed hardened entrances to the complexes, high wall panels erected along the verges of a graded road encircling the mountain peak, and excavations for the installation of more panels. And the north side of the perimeter joins the Natanz plant security ring, according to a report published by the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS).
The multi-peaked mountain contains a new, large, deeply buried tunnel complex and a separate, smaller one dating back to 2007, which was previously partly destroyed. Tehran has barred access to the tunnels to inspectors of the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) who are monitoring its nuclear program. And that suggests that Iran is increasingly worried about foreign surveillance of its nuclear production sites, which the regime claims are just for civilian use. David Albright, the institute president, said the new perimeter suggested that the tunnel complexes – under construction beneath Mount Kolang Gaz La for several years, could become operational relatively soon.
This has raised concerns that they could be used to store Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium or undeclared nuclear materials, and advanced centrifuges that could quickly purify enough uranium for a bomb, Albright added.
IAEA Director General Raphael Grossi said yesterday: “It is obvious that this is a place with numerous and important activities [on Iran’s nuclear program]. “It’s a bit of a ping pong, but the digging continues, the building continues.”