Iran's Supreme Leader says enriched uranium must not be sent abroad - report

21st May 2026 12:48

(Sharecast News) - Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has issued a directive that the country's near-weapons-grade uranium should not be sent abroad, according to two senior Iranian sources cited on Thursday by Reuters.

"The Supreme ​Leader's directive, and the consensus within the establishment, is that the stockpile of enriched uranium should not leave the country," one of the two Iranian ⁠sources told Reuters.

The sources said that Iran's top officials believe that sending the material abroad would leave the country more vulnerable to future attacks ​by the US and Israel. Khamenei has the last say on the most important state matters.

Israeli officials told Reuters that US President Donald ‌Trump has assured Israel that Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium, needed to make an atomic weapon, will be sent out of Iran and that any peace deal must include a clause on this.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will not consider the war over until enriched uranium is removed from Iran, Tehran ends its support for proxy militias, and its ballistic missile capabilities are eliminated.