Trump Warns of Additional Strike on Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain Nuclear Facility

[Financial News] U.S. President Donald Trump delivered a hard-line message about Pickaxe Mountain, known as an underground nuclear facility in Iran, during a speech at the Republican Party’s midterm election convention. Attention is focused on how the United States will respond as signs emerge that Iran is building key nuclear facilities deep underground, beyond the reach of U.S. military sabotage operations.
In a speech at the Republican Party convention in Dallas, Texas, on the 9th (local time), President Trump warned, "Some movement was detected at Pickaxe Mountain," adding, "I advise Iran not to do anything foolish. Otherwise, we will have to hit it very hard."
The unfinished facility, being built 100 to 145 meters underground in a mountainous area, is believed to be designed for uranium enrichment and centrifuge operations. It is reportedly capable of neutralizing even precision strikes by the U.S. military’s massive bunker-buster bombs.
According to satellite imagery analyzed by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, United States, construction activity in the area increased sharply in 2026. The work has reportedly moved beyond simple excavation to the construction of interior facilities and the reinforcement of entrances.
Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also said, "We confirmed activity around the construction site." After an Iranian centrifuge assembly facility was destroyed in a sabotage operation in 2020, Iran began construction at Pickaxe Mountain, saying, "We will place all key facilities inside tunnels in the mountains and protect them completely from external attacks."
[email protected] Yoon Jae-jun Reporter