Speaking to 60 Minutes’ Lesley Stahl in an interview which aired Sunday, Grossi also reiterated that there is no indication that Iran currently has a nuclear weapons program.
“At the current level of production of this enriched uranium, Iran has accumulated already enough material to have more than one device, if they chose to do that. But we don't have any information that would indicate that Iran has a nuclear weapon program at the moment,” he said.
Asked by Stahl whether “we reached the point of no return with Iran? Is it time to just admit they're a nuclear power?" Grossi replied, “No, we haven't reached that point. But we need to work very hard so we don't get there.”
The interview with Grossi took place days after the IAEA released a report in which Grossi concluded there had been "no progress" in the long-standing probe into the presence of undeclared nuclear material found at three sites.
The IAEA probe has become a sticking point in indirect talks between Iran and the US on a return to the 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran in September announced it had submitted its comments to the US response to the European Union’s draft for reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
While Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said at the time that Iran’s response was prepared based on a constructive approach, a senior Biden administration official said the Iranian response "is not at all encouraging.”
A US official later said that the efforts to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal have “hit a wall” because of Iran's insistence on the closure of the UN nuclear watchdog's investigations.
The US envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, said last week that Iran's crackdown on protesters and the sale of drones to Russia have turned the United States' focus away from reviving the nuclear deal.
