Iran and weapons of mass destruction
| Weapons of mass destruction |
|---|
| By type |
| By country |
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| Non-state |
| Biological weapons by country |
| Chemical weapons by country |
| Nuclear weapons by country |
| Proliferation |
| Treaties |
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Iran is not known to currently possess weapons of mass destruction and has signed treaties repudiating the development and possession of WMD including the Non-Proliferation Treaty, Biological Weapons Convention, Chemical Weapons Convention, and Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. The nuclear program of Iran has been one of the most scrutinized in the world; Iran asserts it is purely civilian, while the IAEA Board of Governors has found Iran in non-compliance with its International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) obligations. Iran has called for nuclear-weapon states to disarm and the establishment of a Middle East Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone. Over 100,000 Iranian troops and civilians were victims of Iraqi chemical attacks during the 1980s Iran–Iraq War.
Development of nuclear technology began in the Pahlavi era and continued after the 1979 Iranian Revolution. The United States Intelligence Community assessed in 2007 that Iran pursued nuclear weapons under the AMAD Project between the late 1980s until 2003, then ceasing its effort. In 2005, the IAEA Board of Governors found Iran in non-compliance with its NPT safeguards agreement and in 2006 the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) demanded Iran cease uranium enrichment and imposed sanctions. Throughout the early 2010s, US, EU, and Russian officials said Iran was pursuing nuclear latency, but not weapons possession. The US and Israel sought to covertly degrade the Iranian nuclear program, with the 1990s US Operation Merlin, the 2009 use of the jointly-developed Stuxnet computer worm, and Israeli assassinations of Iranian nuclear scientists since 2010, part of the Iran–Israel proxy conflict.
In 2015, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was signed by Iran with the P5+1, China, France, Russia, the UK, the US, plus Germany: Iran agreed to extensive monitoring and restriction of activities at nuclear facilities in Iran including Arak, Fordow, Isfahan, Natanz, in exchange for sanctions relief. In 2018, US president Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the plan, imposing a maximum pressure campaign of sanctions, and Iran began stockpiling enriched uranium and largely suspended IAEA monitoring.
On 12 June 2025, the IAEA found Iran non-compliant with its NPT safeguards agreement for the first time since 2005. On 13 June, Israel launched airstrikes targeting Iranian military leaders, nuclear scientists, and nuclear facilities, beginning the twelve-day Iran–Israel war. On 22 June, the United States bombed Iranian nuclear sites with larger bunker-buster bombs. Iran subsequently suspended operation with the IAEA. In August, France, Germany, and the UK triggered the snapback mechanism, which reinstated UN sanctions in September. On 18 October, Iran, Russia, and China declared the JCPOA terminated and the UN sanctions legally void. In February 2026, Israel and the United States launched large-scale strikes against Iran, with Iranian nuclear and missile programs as one justification.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force's acquisition of missile technologies, especially ballistic missiles, has also led to sanctions. In 2010, UNSC Resolution 1929 prohibited Iran from ballistic missile technology, although it is disputed if the 2015 UNSC Resolution 2231 overturned this. Iran supplies missiles to its allies, particularly the Houthis and Hezbollah.