Key Points:
- In the midst of negotiations on the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, the showdown between Tehran and Washington continues regarding Iranian enriched uranium.
- Revelations in the American press suggest that Donald Trump may recover what he calls “nuclear dust.”
- The United States has previously extracted uranium from another nation, like in Kazakhstan, but under different circumstances.
Seizing Iranian uranium, a mission impossible for Trump? Not so certain. Amid tensions between Tehran and Washington, the American president stated on Monday, April 20, that it would be “long and difficult” to unearth the 440 kilograms of highly enriched Iranian uranium, contrary to his previous assertions. These stocks, heavily damaged since American strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June 2025, are hard to locate.
Context:
Iran denies any transfer of this “nuclear dust.” The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esma’il Baghaei, as quoted by state television, emphasized the importance of this issue for Iran as the country considers its soil sacred.
Counterpart for Iran
According to the American press, including an article from the Wall Street Journal on April 17, the American president is carefully planning to obtain this 60% enriched uranium, close to the 90% required for nuclear bomb development.
The deal proposed by Washington? Unfreezing $20 billion in blocked funds abroad for Tehran, not as a lifting of U.S. economic sanctions but as a gesture. Iran is said to be considering this, urged by its Pakistani and Chinese partners.
Even if the agreement remains hypothetical, what logistics would it entail? The journalist Lucile Devillers explains in a video accompanying this article from the LCI program that uranium is stored in highly sealed metal containers, which would require careful excavation.
