Mojtaba Khamenei Issues New Uranium Diktat Amid Peace Talks, Trump Responds

US President Donald Trump has pledged to seize and destroy Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium despite statements from Iran's Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, that Tehran will not hand over the nuclear material. The US leader also claimed the US has "total control" of the Strait of Hormuz through its naval blockade, even as the blockade of the vital global oil supply route and Iran's nuclear ambitions continue to be the two biggest thorny issues in a long-term peace deal to pause the war in the Middle East. 

Responding to a reporter's query about Khamenei's comments, Trump said, "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."

"We have total control of Strait of Hormuz with our blockade. Iran will not get nuclear weapon or we'll do something drastic," he added.

The remarks came a day after it was reported that Iran's Supreme Leader issued a directive that the country's near-weapons-grade uranium should not be sent abroad.

Israel, the United States and other Western states have long accused Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, including pointing to its move to enrich uranium to 60 per cent, far higher than needed for civilian uses and closer to the 90 per cent needed for a weapon. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons.  

Trump's Assurance

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will not consider the war over until enriched uranium is removed from Iran, Tehran ends its support for proxy militias, and its ballistic missile capabilities are eliminated.

Israeli officials have told news agency Reuters that Trump has assured Israel that Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium, needed to make an atomic weapon, will be sent out of Iran and that any peace deal must include a clause on this.

Iran's Stand 

As per a Reuters report, Iran's top officials believe that sending the material abroad would leave the country more vulnerable to future attacks by the United States and Israel. Khamenei has the last say on the most important state matters.

"The Supreme Leader's directive, and the consensus within the establishment, is that the stockpile of enriched uranium should not leave the country," said one of the two Iranian sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The Shaky Peace Deal

A shaky ceasefire is in place in the war that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, after which Iran fired at Gulf states hosting US military bases and fighting broke out between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon. But there has been no big breakthrough in peace efforts, with a US blockade of Iranian ports and Tehran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global oil supply route, complicating negotiations mediated by Pakistan.

Senior Iranian sources also told the agency that there was deep suspicion in Iran that the pause in hostilities was a tactical deception by Washington to create a sense of security before it renews airstrikes. Iran's top peace negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, said on Wednesday that "obvious and hidden moves by the enemy" showed the Americans were preparing new attacks.

Trump, meanwhile, said the US was ready to proceed with further attacks on Tehran if Iran did not agree to a peace deal, but suggested Washington could wait a few days to "get the right answers."