Donald Trump
US President Donald Trump suggested that efforts to recover Iran’s enriched uranium are driven more by public perception after Israel pushed for it to become a key objective.
“I’d feel more comfortable if we got it, honestly, but I think it’s more about optics than anything else,” Trump said during an interview with Fox News presenter Sean Hannity from China, aired late Thursday in the United States.
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He added, “Another option is to strike it again. But I would prefer recovering it, and we will.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who coordinated with Trump in launching attacks on Iran beginning February 28, recently stated that the conflict was “not finished” because the sensitive nuclear material “must be removed” from Iran.
Last June, Trump ordered airstrikes on three major Iranian nuclear facilities following an earlier Israeli assault on the Islamic Republic.
Trump has repeatedly claimed the facilities were “completely destroyed,” despite citing allegations — disputed by UN nuclear inspectors — that Iran was nearing the development of a nuclear weapon as justification for this year’s conflict.
Iran has not disclosed where its highly enriched uranium stockpile is located. Some analysts believe it may be hidden deep underground, making any attempt to recover it extremely difficult without accurate intelligence.
Iran increased uranium enrichment to levels close to weapons-grade purity after Trump withdrew the United States from the 2015 nuclear deal negotiated under former President Barack Obama.
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