Agencies | Washington:
Even as signs of a possible diplomatic breakthrough emerged between the United States and Iran to end the ongoing conflict in West Asia, Tehran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium has surfaced as a major sticking point in the negotiations.
The latest deadlock comes after reports that Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei declared that the country’s near-weapons-grade uranium would not be sent abroad, directly conflicting with one of Washington’s key demands in the ongoing talks.
Responding to the development, US President Donald Trump said the United States would not permit Iran to retain highly enriched uranium.
“No. We will get it. We don’t need it. We don’t want it. We’ll probably destroy it after we get it — but we’re not going to let them have it,” Trump said when asked whether Iran could keep its uranium stockpile.
The US president added that negotiations were continuing under the ongoing ceasefire process but reiterated that Tehran would never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon.
“Right now, we’re negotiating, and we’ll see, but we’re going to get it one way or the other. They’re not going to have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
Trump also claimed that Iran was losing nearly USD 500 million every day due to restrictions around the Strait of Hormuz, while praising the role of the US Navy in maintaining pressure around the strategic waterway.
“We want it open, we want it free, we don’t want tolls,” Trump said, describing the strait as an international shipping route vital for global trade.
According to Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency, Washington has demanded that Tehran surrender nearly 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium and limit its nuclear activities to a single facility.
The United States and Iran have been exchanging proposals in recent weeks in an effort to end the West Asia conflict that erupted on February 28. So far, both sides have held one formal round of talks under a fragile ceasefire that came into effect on April 8.
Meanwhile, Iran has continued to highlight its strategic leverage over the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil shipping routes. According to ISNA, Tehran has maintained that it controls the strait and intends to impose charges on ships passing through the route.
