Iran nuclear program at dangerous threshold amid US diplomatic efforts

Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that the United States faces a critical moment with Iran to curb the Islamic Republic’s efforts to develop a nuclear weapon and limit its uranium enrichment.

In an interview Thursday on “Hannity,” Rubio said that all NATO members will have agreed on a goal of reaching 5% of GDP on defense over the next decade by the 2025 NATO Summit in June, amid rising global threats.

U.S. and Iranian officials have held four rounds of talks, primarily in Oman, since President Donald Trump took office to address Tehran’s nuclear program.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, often referred to as the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, noted in a March report that Iran’s stockpile of 60% enriched uranium had alarmingly grown from 182 kg to 275 kg, approximately 401 pounds to 606 pounds, in early 2025.

“Once you’re at 60, you’re 90% of the way there. You are, in essence, a threshold nuclear weapons state, which is what Iran basically has become,” Rubio said in an interview from Turkey.

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“They are at the threshold of a nuclear weapon. If they decided to do so, they could do so very quickly. If they stockpile enough of that 60 percent enriched, they could very quickly turn it into 90 and weaponize it. That’s the danger we face right now. That’s the urgency here.”

He added: “They are fairly close. Too close for comfort, to a nuclear weapon.”

Trump told reporters in Qatar that the United States was getting close to a nuclear deal with Iran. 

“Iran has sort of agreed to the terms,” he said, adding that the Middle Eastern nation can never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon.

The New York Times reported that Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday at a book-signing ceremony in Tehran that his country would never give up its right to civilian nuclear energy. “None of our nuclear enrichment facilities will be dismantled,” he said, according to the outlet.

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The White House announced in February that it would engage in a “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran in an effort to curb its nuclear program, international ballistic missile development and support for regional proxies that seek to harm Americans.

Rubio told Fox News host Sean Hannity that Trump wants Iran to be a peaceful and prosperous country. 

“In the end, the decision lies in the hands of one person, and that’s the supreme leader in Iran, and I hope he chooses the path of peace and prosperity, not a destructive path, and we’ll see how that plays out,” he said.