US President Donald Trump has said Iran’s enriched uranium could either be transferred to the United States for destruction or eliminated under international supervision at an agreed location, signalling a shift from his earlier insistence that Tehran hand over the material to Washington as a precondition for any deal.
Trump said Iran’s enriched uranium could be destroyed in the US, at its current location, or “another acceptable location” under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
“The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location, with the Atomic Energy Commission, or its equivalent, being witness to this process and event,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The remarks mark a notable shift in Trump’s position after he repeatedly maintained that Iran must surrender its enriched uranium to the US as part of any prospective agreement.
On Monday, Trump said negotiations aimed at ending the conflict with Iran were progressing “nicely” and urged countries involved in the talks to sign the Abraham Accords, which seek to normalise diplomatic, economic and security ties between Israel and Arab nations.
He said it would be an honour for Iran to join the agreement.
“After all the work done by the United States to try and pull this very complex puzzle together, it should be mandatory that all of these Countries, at a minimum, simultaneously, sign onto the Abraham Accords,” Trump said, adding that it may be accepted if one or two have a reason for not doing so.
Trump said he expects Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkiye, Egypt and Jordan to sign the accords, while the UAE and Bahrain are already members.
Responding to criticism from within the Republican Party over the proposed Iran deal, Trump said the draft under negotiation was fundamentally different from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), negotiated during former President Barack Obama’s administration.
“The deal with Iran will either be a great and meaningful one, or there will be no deal. It will be the exact opposite of the JCPOA disaster negotiated by the failed Obama Administration, which was a direct and open path to a Nuclear Weapon for Iran. No, I don't do deals like that,” Trump said.
“It will only be a Great Deal for all or, no Deal at all - Back to the Battlefront and shooting, but bigger and stronger than ever before - And nobody wants that,” he said in a separate post on Truth Social.
(With inputs from PTI)