Iran could generate enough weapons-grade uranium for a nuclear bomb in under a week if it chose to, U.S. Strategic Command chief General Anthony Cotton told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday.
In his written testimony, Cotton stated that Iran has significantly expanded its stockpile of highly enriched uranium and deployed more advanced IR-6 centrifuges, particularly at the Fordow facility.
As a result, Iran’s estimated “breakout time”—the period required to amass sufficient weapons-grade uranium—has dropped from 10–15 days to “presumably less than one week,” the general said.
However, despite these advancements, Cotton emphasized that Iran has not yet made the decision to develop a nuclear weapon.
Beyond its nuclear program, Cotton also warned that Iran holds the region’s largest arsenal of conventional ballistic missiles, some of which have been used in attacks on Israel over the past year. He noted that Tehran continues to supply advanced weaponry to proxy groups across the Middle East, escalating instability and posing a threat to U.S. forces and allies.
His comments came after Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told the Senate Intelligence Committee that while Iran has expanded its uranium stockpile, it is not building a nuclear weapon, and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003.
Renewed concerns over Iran’s nuclear capabilities have emerged amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran as well as ongoing regional conflicts involving Israel. Iran has repeatedly claimed that its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes.
