**Marco Rubio, alongside President Trump, defends their stance on the effectiveness of U.S. military strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities, citing years of setbacks for the program despite contrasting intelligence findings.**
**Rubio Advocates for Strengthened View on Iran's Nuclear Setback**
**Rubio Advocates for Strengthened View on Iran's Nuclear Setback**
**U.S. Secretary of State argues against intelligence report, claiming significant damage to Iran's nuclear capabilities.**
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with President Trump, presented their strongest defense yet regarding the U.S. military strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, asserting that these actions have critically undermined Iran's nuclear ambitions. This was in direct opposition to a recent U.S. intelligence report which suggested that the impact of such strikes may be less significant than claimed.
Rubio provided a detailed rationale for why he believes Iran's nuclear program has been set back for years, contrary to the Defense Intelligence Agency's preliminary assessment of only a few months. Central to his argument was the destruction of a critical "conversion facility" located in Isfahan, which is essential for transforming nuclear fuel into a state suitable for weaponization.
Reports from Israel indicated that this facility, alongside an associated laboratory, sustained severe damage during the strikes. Independent analysts corroborated this viewpoint, acknowledging the considerable destruction suffered by the plant.
"You can’t do a nuclear weapon without a conversion facility," Rubio emphasized, underscoring the importance of this site to Iran's nuclear capabilities. He further claimed that the facility has been "obliterated," rendering it unidentifiable on maps and effectively non-existent.
While satellite images depict the widespread destruction of the area, a comprehensive assessment of the extensive damage can only be made following the clearance for international nuclear inspectors to access the site. Until then, the extent of what it would take to rebuild the damaged infrastructure remains unclear.
Rubio provided a detailed rationale for why he believes Iran's nuclear program has been set back for years, contrary to the Defense Intelligence Agency's preliminary assessment of only a few months. Central to his argument was the destruction of a critical "conversion facility" located in Isfahan, which is essential for transforming nuclear fuel into a state suitable for weaponization.
Reports from Israel indicated that this facility, alongside an associated laboratory, sustained severe damage during the strikes. Independent analysts corroborated this viewpoint, acknowledging the considerable destruction suffered by the plant.
"You can’t do a nuclear weapon without a conversion facility," Rubio emphasized, underscoring the importance of this site to Iran's nuclear capabilities. He further claimed that the facility has been "obliterated," rendering it unidentifiable on maps and effectively non-existent.
While satellite images depict the widespread destruction of the area, a comprehensive assessment of the extensive damage can only be made following the clearance for international nuclear inspectors to access the site. Until then, the extent of what it would take to rebuild the damaged infrastructure remains unclear.
