Washington: US President Donald Trump stated on Friday that the United States intends to collaborate with Tehran to retrieve Iran’s enriched uranium and transport the material to American soil.

In a telephone interview with Reuters, the president described a plan to recover what he termed "nuclear dust" following the U.S.-Israeli bombardment of Iranian nuclear facilities in June of last year.

"We're going to get it together. We're going to go in with Iran, at a nice leisurely pace, and go down and start excavating with big machinery... We'll bring it back to the United States," Trump said, adding that the recovery would commence "very soon."

Tehran Issues Denial

The Iranian government quickly refuted the president’s claims, asserting that no such agreement to relinquish its nuclear inventory exists. Iran is estimated to hold over 900 pounds of uranium enriched to 60% purity, a level nearing weapons-grade capability.

"Iran's enriched uranium is not going to be transferred anywhere; transferring uranium to the United States has not been an option for us," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told state television.

While Washington maintains that the primary objective of the conflict was to neutralise Iran’s nuclear weapons potential, Tehran continues to argue that its enrichment activities are exclusively for civilian energy purposes.

Negotiations and Financial Terms

The president expressed optimism regarding the diplomatic trajectory, noting that additional discussions are slated to occur "probably over the weekend." He indicated that he might travel to Islamabad following the finalisation of an agreement, though he clarified, "I haven't made that determination."

Trump also dismissed reports suggesting that the United States had proposed a $20 billion payment in exchange for the uranium. "It's totally false. No money is changing hands," he stated.

Maritime Security and Blockades

Despite the reported rapport with Iranian leadership, the president emphasised that the U.S. naval blockade will remain in effect until a formal treaty is signed. He also confirmed that the two nations are working together to clear naval mines from the Strait of Hormuz to restore global shipping.

"I think the deal will go very quickly. We're getting along very well with Iran," Trump remarked, signalling a possible end to the weeks of devastating regional warfare.