‘Enriched uranium will stay in Iran’: Mojtaba Khamenei draws red line amid US-Israel tensions

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has reportedly ordered that the country’s stockpile of near-weapons-grade enriched uranium must remain inside Iran, a move that could further complicate fragile peace negotiations involving the United States and Israel.

According to a Reuters report citing two senior Iranian sources, the directive reflects Tehran’s hardened position on one of Washington’s key demands during talks aimed at ending the ongoing US-Israel-Iran conflict.

Israeli officials reportedly believe US President Donald Trump had assured Israel that any future peace agreement would include the removal of Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile from Iranian territory.

The dispute centres around Iran’s uranium enrichment programme, which Western powers have long suspected could be used to develop nuclear weapons.

Iran has enriched uranium up to 60% purity, a level far beyond civilian energy needs and much closer to weapons-grade material. Tehran, however, continues to insist its nuclear programme is peaceful.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly stated that the conflict cannot truly end unless Iran removes its enriched uranium stockpile, dismantles its ballistic missile programme and stops backing regional proxy militias.

“The Supreme Leader’s directive, and the consensus within the establishment, is that the stockpile of enriched uranium should not leave the country,” one Iranian source told Reuters anonymously due to the sensitivity of the issue.

Iranian officials reportedly fear that exporting the uranium would leave the country strategically vulnerable to future military strikes by the United States or Israel.

Sources also claimed there is deep suspicion within Tehran that the current ceasefire could simply be a tactical pause before renewed attacks.

A fragile ceasefire has remained in place since hostilities escalated following US-Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities on February 28.

Iran later retaliated by targeting Gulf states hosting US military bases, while tensions simultaneously intensified between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon.

Despite mediation efforts led by Pakistan, negotiations have reportedly stalled over major disagreements tied to Iran’s nuclear programme, especially the fate of the uranium stockpile and Tehran’s insistence on preserving its right to continue uranium enrichment.

Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, warned on Wednesday that both “obvious and hidden moves by the enemy” suggested the United States was preparing for possible new attacks.

Trump, meanwhile, warned that Washington was ready to launch further strikes if Tehran refused to agree to a peace deal, though he indicated the US could wait “a few days” before making its next move.

Sources familiar with the negotiations said both sides have narrowed some differences, but core disputes remain unresolved. Iran has reportedly demanded permanent guarantees against future US-Israeli attacks before entering deeper nuclear negotiations.

Before tensions escalated, Tehran had reportedly signalled willingness to export part of its uranium enriched to 60%.

However, that position appears to have changed after repeated warnings from Trump about possible military action.

One Iranian source suggested that compromise options still exist, including diluting the enriched uranium stockpile under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The International Atomic Energy Agency estimates that Iran possessed nearly 441 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60% before Israeli and US strikes targeted Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025.

The exact status and location of the remaining stockpile remain uncertain. IAEA chief Rafael Grossi had earlier stated that much of the surviving material was believed to be stored in underground tunnels at the Isfahan nuclear facility, with additional material likely remaining at the Natanz enrichment complex.

Iran has maintained that part of its highly enriched uranium programme is intended for medical research and for operating a Tehran-based research reactor that uses uranium enriched to around 20%.