The president has said on multiple occasions that the United States would acquire the country’s enriched uranium.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday told reporters that the United States will obtain enriched uranium from Iran’s controversial nuclear program amid proposals that have been made to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
“We’re going to get it,” Trump told a reporter as he left a White House event, referring to the Iranian uranium. “We’re going to get it,” he said again.
During the brief exchange with the reporter, Trump did not say how the U.S. government would acquire the substance.
One of Trump’s top objectives in launching military strikes against Iran starting Feb. 28 was to ensure the Iranian regime does not develop a nuclear weapon. Iran has yet to hand over the more than 900 pounds of enriched uranium it has stated is in its possession.
U.S., Israeli, and European officials have long said that Tehran is seeking to acquire a nuclear weapon, although Iran has insisted that its nuclear program is intended for civilian purposes. On multiple occasions over the years, the United Nations’ nuclear agency has said that its inspectors were rebuffed by Iranian officials and has questioned the legitimacy of Iran’s claims about its facilities.
In an interview with PBS published Wednesday, Trump reiterated that Iran “cannot have a nuclear weapon” and said that any economic cost due to the military campaign would be “worth it” to prevent Tehran from obtaining one.
When asked about whether the uranium would be handed over by Iran to the United States, he responded: “It goes to the United States.”
The president on Wednesday also talked about peace negotiations, a day after his Tuesday announcement that he would be ending the U.S. military’s operation to assist the safe passage of neutral civilian shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway that carries about a fifth of the world’s oil and gas on a normal day.
“If we make this deal, we’ll be lightening up on Iran with sanctions,” Trump told PBS on the negotiations. “If they agree, it’s over, and if they don’t agree, we bomb,” he added.
