The Iranian regime has built out an underground facility at its Parchin military complex, and also removed “potentially incriminating traces of activity” while international nuclear talks were underway, satellite images published by intelligence site Stratfor reveal.
The new photos which had been taken five years apart show a tunnel entrance to the complex being reinforced and construction being completed on possible administrative buildings in recent years.
“Iran’s nuclear deal with the West has come into effect, but that does not mean international concerns about Tehran’s nuclear program have been fully resolved. Iran has continued to develop certain military technologies, including ballistic missiles, that could someday be used to support nuclear capabilities,” Stratfor writes.
“Based on the images, it is clear that Iran began making an effort to scrub the site clean in 2012, as talks with the West began to show more potential. It removed layers of soil and foliage that could have contained evidence of its previous activities well before inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency arrived in September 2015, and covered large areas with concrete.”
“it is true that Iran has relied heavily on underground facilities like those at Parchin to develop conventional weapons, the country’s hidden military sites continue to cast doubt on Tehran’s long-term commitment to the nuclear accord.”
When inspectors visited Parchin late last year, they were handed soil samples by the regime’s authorities. They were not allowed to take their own samples.
