But one critical point continues to be largely and inexplicably overlooked: Iran’s stockpile of over 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium (HEU)—enriched to 60 percent uranium 235—is weapon usable.
This means that Iran’s HEU—which the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported in June as being
unaccounted for following Israel’s initial air strikes and which may have been
moved to secure locations before the attacks—could be used directly to make bombs without requiring further enrichment.
If Iran still has access to some of its HEU stockpile, then direct use of that material may suddenly appear to its leaders as the most attractive and fastest pathway to a bomb, especially if its ability to enrich uranium has indeed been significantly degraded. There may be
other chokepoints along the road to weaponization, but access to bomb material would not be one of them.