NYT: Iran's new Supreme Leader more focused on nukes

US intelligence agencies assess that Iran's new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, shows significantly greater interest in developing nuclear weapons compared to his father, according to US officials familiar with the intelligence assessments, Report informs via The New York Times.

It was noted that Mojtaba's father, who was killed in an Israeli strike early in the war with US intelligence support, never openly called for Iran to build nuclear arms. However, sources claim that the current Supreme Leader and the more conservative government now in power hold such ambitions.

The newspaper noted that US intelligence also concluded Iran has relocated part of its centrifuges for uranium enrichment from facilities struck by US attacks in June 2025 to a new, heavily fortified underground complex in the Pickaxe Mountain in central Iran. Sources said the site is additionally guarded by ground forces to prevent a possible land operation.

US officials believe these steps indicate Tehran's intent to preserve its uranium enrichment capabilities. Sources further alleged that the key components of a potential nuclear program – including stockpiles of highly enriched uranium – remain intact and accessible to Iran's leadership.