Trump has not decided to send forces to enter Iran’s nuclear facilities

Two informed sources said that US President Donald Trump has not yet made a decision about sending US forces to Iran to seize nuclear materials, in a move described as high risk.

The sources added to CBS News that Trump said in private conversations: “I have a lot of decisions to make,” at a time when the Pentagon was preparing several options for the president regarding the next steps in the war with Iran.

The International Atomic Energy Agency announced, following US strikes targeting three Iranian nuclear sites last summer, that it could not determine the fate of about 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium.

According to the sources, Trump believes that Iran’s military capabilities have been greatly damaged, especially the navy and air force, but he expressed his concern about Tehran’s ability to plant sea mines that could disrupt navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump told reporters on Tuesday that it was unclear whether Iran had actually begun planting mines, adding: “We don’t even know if there are mines, but if there are we would like some help finding them.”

The sources indicated that the US administration is also facing difficulty in determining who currently assumes the primary leadership in Iran, as Trump described the situation as “close to a state of chaos.”

For her part, White House spokeswoman Caroline Levitt said that the option of recovering nuclear materials was “on the table,” but she declined to provide further comment.

On the other hand, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Mariano Grossi, expressed his doubts about the possibility of destroying the Iranian nuclear program militarily, noting that it is “widespread and distributed over several facilities” inside the country.

He added that it is in the interest of all parties to resume the diplomatic track after the end of the fighting to address concerns related to the nuclear program.

On the other hand, satellite images showed that Iran has filled in tunnel entrances at a nuclear site, which may complicate any potential military operation to access nuclear materials.

Threats related to the Strait of Hormuz also continue, as a British maritime security authority reported receiving reports of about 15 attacks since the start of operations, using “unknown projectiles,” at a time when oil tankers face the dangers of missiles, drones, and sea mines.