All articles tagged with #uranium
Trump said he would not be comfortable with Iran shipping its highly enriched uranium to Russia or China as part of any deal to end the war, insisting there would be no sanctions relief and that the uranium could be destroyed instead; he also said the Strait of Hormuz must stay open and voiced continuing diplomacy for a short-term end to the conflict.
Oil prices rebounded as markets weighed Iran’s directive to keep near-weapons-grade uranium inside the country and ongoing supply disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz, with the IEA warning of a potential red zone as demand climbs.
A New York Times report cites anonymous Middle East officials saying the United States and Israel are preparing to resume joint attacks on Iran as soon as next week, the most significant buildup since a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire in April. Officials including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth discuss escalation plans, while President Trump warns Iran to make a deal or be annihilated. Iran’s parliament warns it could boost uranium enrichment to 90%, underscoring a high-stakes nuclear dispute amid the looming prospect of renewed conflict.
A regional flood has closed the Smoothstone River Bridge, disrupting Cameco's main supply route to the McArthur River and Key Lake operations. Although the sites are not flooded, Key Lake mill production is temporarily halted and McArthur River mine activity reduced as delivery routes are restricted. Cigar Lake continues to operate. The timeline for resuming normal deliveries is unknown, potentially impacting Cameco's 2026 production outlook for McArthur River/Key Lake, while the company works with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Highways to minimize disruption and keeps the overall annual production plan unchanged for now.
In a 60 Minutes interview, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the Iran conflict isn’t over until Iran’s highly enriched uranium is removed and enrichment facilities are dismantled; monitors estimate about 970 pounds of near bomb‑grade uranium, and removal could be the best path if a deal is reached, though no timetable is given.
New York Times data show Iran built roughly 11 tons of enriched uranium since 2018, breaching caps and boosting purity up to 60%, with pace accelerating after Trump left the deal; after 2025 U.S. strikes and Iran’s halt of IAEA inspections, much of the stockpile’s status remains unverified and some material may be buried or stored in hardened sites, raising concerns about undisclosed enrichment sites.
Trump said U.S. negotiators will travel to Pakistan on Monday for talks with Iran, signaling potential diplomacy via Pakistan; Iran’s deputy foreign minister said Tehran isn’t ready for a new round of face-to-face talks because Washington hasn’t abandoned its maximalist stance. Trump also claimed the U.S. would ‘get all the nuclear dust’ from Iran, referring to enriched uranium believed buried at sites damaged by last year’s strikes.
President Trump claimed Iran has agreed to hand over its remaining uranium and halt enrichment, suggesting the war could end soon if a peace deal is reached. A new round of U.S.–Iran talks was anticipated, while markets gave mixed reactions, leaving the credibility of the claim uncertain and under close watch by investors and policymakers.
The U.S. and Iran are negotiating a three-page framework that could see roughly $20 billion of Iran’s frozen assets unfrozen in exchange for Tehran agreeing to curb its stockpiled enriched uranium, with some material potentially down-blended in Iran or shipped to a third country under international monitoring. Mediated by Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey, the talks aim to end the war and gatekeep Iran’s nuclear program, though disagreements remain on the duration of any enrichment moratorium and related regional issues, with potential follow-up meetings in Islamabad.
Nuclear physicist Patricia Lewis says Trump’s plan to seize Iran’s uranium is a misreading of the issue; Iran’s heavy-enrichment program and guarded facilities mean stockpile figures don’t directly indicate weapon readiness, and the real danger lies in escalating tensions and the complexity of Iran’s nuclear program.
US President Donald Trump is reported to be weighing a targeted operation to seize about 1,000 pounds of enriched uranium from Iran, though no decision has been made and troop risk is a factor. Some allies privately deem seizure feasible and not likely to dramatically extend the war, but experts warn it would be highly complex and dangerous, given the cylinders’ gaseous form and the need for under-fire transport, decoy risks, and airfield security. IAEA chief Rafael Grossi doubts feasibility. Trump has urged Iran to surrender the uranium voluntarily as the US pursues mediation to end the confrontation without Iran gaining a nuclear weapon, citing past peaceful transfers like Project Sapphire (1994) and a 1998 UK-US operation.
President Donald Trump is reportedly weighing a high‑risk, ground operation to extract roughly 1,000 pounds of enriched uranium from Iran’s Isfahan and Natanz facilities as a condition for ending the war; no decision has been made, officials say, and the mission would likely require troops to secure the site plus a special operations team to handle radioactive material while facing Iranian drones and missiles. Some advisers have floated a focused grab that wouldn’t prolong the conflict, but the plan remains unsettled with officials declining to comment.
Three Chinese citizens were arrested in Tbilisi, Georgia, for attempting to illegally purchase 2 kilograms of uranium with plans to transport it to China via Russia, with a criminal group involved in the operation.
BWX Technologies secured a $1.5 billion contract to support the U.S. government's goal of increasing domestic uranium enrichment, fueling a rally in uranium-related stocks amid broader efforts by the Trump administration to boost U.S. nuclear capabilities and reduce reliance on imports.
The Jerusalem Post reports that Mossad has knowledge of Iran's near-bomb-grade uranium stockpiles and could intervene if Tehran attempts to use them, with Israeli agents actively operating inside Iran to monitor and target nuclear facilities.