CIA Director Lifts Lid On What Iran Was Quietly Building At Blistering Pace

CIA Director John Ratcliffe said during a Wednesday hearing that the United States had moved on the Iranian regime in part because of the “alarming” rate at which Iran was building and stockpiling weapons that could have eventually been fired at Americans or American allies.

Ratcliffe took questions from members of the Senate Intelligence Committee on the reasons President Donald Trump’s administration had viewed Iran as an imminent threat, saying the regime had been pressing onward with missile development at a rate that American defenses would not have been able to match.

WATCH:

NEW: According to CIA Director Ratcliffe, Iran was developing missiles “at rates that were alarming” and faster than the United States could build defenses. pic.twitter.com/AXrGBsgtfM

— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) March 18, 2026

When asked by Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) whether Iran was continuing production of both short and midrange ballistic missiles, Ratcliffe’s answer was a definitive yes.

“Yes … continuing to develop them, and at rates that were alarming,” Ratcliffe confirmed.

“And what about our ability to respond to those? We have very good defensive capabilities, but it takes time for us to build our defensive capabilities,” Rounds continued. “Were they building their offensive capabilities while they were negotiating with us at a faster rate than we could build defensive capabilities?”

“Yes,” Ratcliffe declared.

“Were they continuing to work at and deliver additional resources to terrorist organizations that were affiliated with them in the region?” Rounds pressed onward.

“Yes,” was Ratcliffe’s reply.

Rounds noted once again that all of this was taking place while Iran was supposedly negotiating with the United States.

“So in other words, while they were supposedly diplomatically working with us during that entire time, they were continuing with regard to their nuclear intentions, they were building additional missile systems to deliver — or conventional weapons systems — to threaten their neighbors,” Rounds pieced it all together, saying that the end result could have been far more dangerous when eventually the United States would have been forced to go in and “clean” things up.

Rounds further stated that he agreed with the Trump administration’s assessment that, if such a thing were possible, it would be “safer” for the United States to deal with the threat posed by Iran before such capabilities could be fully realized.

“I agree with that,” Ratcliffe said.