Trump Demands Iran Surrender or Destroy 60% Uranium Stockpile After 2026 Strikes
Updated
Updated · Fox News · May 29
Trump Demands Iran Surrender or Destroy 60% Uranium Stockpile After 2026 Strikes
8 articles · Updated · Fox News · May 29
Trump said Iran’s enriched uranium must be immediately turned over to the United States or destroyed in place, making the stockpile the central unresolved issue in nuclear talks.
60% enriched uranium is near weapons grade, and experts say damaged sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan may still contain material that airstrikes did not eliminate.
Securing it would likely require excavation crews, IAEA inspectors and hazardous-materials teams to enter heavily damaged underground facilities, package the toxic material and either remove or neutralize it.
Iran has called retaining enriched uranium a negotiation red line, while some nonproliferation specialists argue internationally monitored downblending may be more practical than seizure or destruction inside the sites.
Any longer-term deal would likely hinge on continuous IAEA access, accounting for the stockpile and tighter limits—or a moratorium—on Iran’s future enrichment.
Could Kazakhstan's nuclear expertise be the key to breaking the US-Iran diplomatic deadlock?
How can toxic uranium be safely removed from Iran's damaged underground bunkers?
The 2026 U.S.-Iran Nuclear Standoff: Enriched Uranium, Ceasefire Fragility, and Global Proliferation Risks
Overview
As of late May 2026, the United States and Iran are locked in a tense standoff over Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile. President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu demand that Iran remove or destroy its 60% enriched uranium, warning that Iran could reach weapons-grade levels within weeks. Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has categorically refused these demands, citing national security and distrust after recent attacks. The U.S. insists that sanctions relief and the release of frozen funds will only come if Iran meets these core demands, but Iran rejects exporting its uranium, keeping the diplomatic deadlock unresolved.