Iran’s New Supreme Leader More Inclined Toward Nuclear Weapons

U.S. intelligence agencies believe that Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, is more willing than his father to equip Iran with nuclear weapons, The New York Times reported, citing officials.

Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since February when he was wounded at the very beginning of the war in an Israeli attack supported by U.S. intelligence services—in which his father Ali was killed, leading him to succeed as Supreme Leader—has never publicly called for the development of an atomic bomb.

However, in Washington it is believed that he has ambitions for Iran to develop a small thermonuclear weapon that could be carried by a long-range missile.

U.S. officials, however, emphasize that most of the intelligence data on this is from before the war and that Tehran has so far not taken any steps to revive its nuclear program, but only to protect its equipment.

Iran has reportedly moved uranium enrichment centrifuges into a heavily fortified underground complex 100 meters beneath the surface of the granite Kolang mountain in the center of the country. Washington calls it “Pickaxe Mountain,” which is a translation from Farsi of its name, given due to the way the mountain pass was excavated.

This site, buried too deep to be reached by the most powerful American conventional bombs, could nevertheless become a target as U.S. President Donald Trump considers intensifying his military campaign against Iran.

Despite the American attacks in June 2025 on the Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan sites, Iran’s stockpiles of highly enriched uranium remain untouched and available, The New York Times reported.