JERUSALEM — As the U.S. and Iran prepare for talks this weekend, a new report from a prominent U.S. research institute that monitors Iran’s nuclear program says Tehran’s nuclear weapons program has reached a critically dangerous point.

The Institute for Science and International Security, based in Washington, D.C., released the alarming report titled “The Iran Threat Geiger Counter: .”

The study states that “Since February 2024, when the last report was issued, the threat from Iran’s nuclear program has increased substantially. Key factors include Iran’s enhanced nuclear weapon capabilities, the reduced timeframe for building nuclear weapons, and the increasing acceptance within Iran of discussions about building nuclear weapons.”

“Iran’s potential decision to construct nuclear weapons is heightened by ongoing Middle Eastern military conflicts, which pit Iran and its proxy forces against Israel and its allies, a conflict in which Iran is currently losing ground. This unstable security situation is compounded by the perception, if not the reality, that Iran is actively preparing to develop nuclear weapons.”

President said on Wednesday, “We have limited time, but we must act quickly because we cannot allow them to possess nuclear weapons. We simply cannot permit them to have nuclear weapons.” He added, “I’m not asking for much. I simply insist that they cannot have nuclear weapons.”

When questioned about the possibility of military intervention if Iran fails to reach an agreement regarding its nuclear weapons, Trump responded, “Absolutely.”

“If necessary, we will resort to military action,” the president informed reporters at the White House. “Israel will undoubtedly play a significant role, taking the lead. However, we are not dictated by anyone. We act according to our own interests.”

Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal—the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action—in 2018, arguing that the agreement failed to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapons device.

An Iranian state-controlled news outlet claimed on Monday that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s supposed fatwa against nuclear weapons prohibits their use but does not forbid their production. Digital attempted to obtain a copy of the alleged religious edict from Iran, but the regime has thus far declined to provide the document. Experts on Iran have suggested the fatwa may not even exist.

The Institute for Science and International Security report also cautioned that “Iran continues to possess military capabilities that pose a threat to the region, including extensive stockpiles of drones, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles that could be used against Israel and its allies. Iran also remains heavily involved in the Ukraine war, providing substantial arms transfers, including drones and missiles, to Russia.”

Kayhan, the anti-American newspaper that serves as a mouthpiece for Iran’s Khamenei, recently urged the .

A State Department spokesperson stated to Digital that “Threatening language from the Iranian regime or its mouthpiece against the President, or any American, is unwise.”

Iran’s regime has been implicated in attempts to assassinate Iranian American dissidents on U.S. soil.

Digital reporter Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.