Trump warns US could bomb Iran again if uranium enrichment resumes

Sydney Morning Herald

7 hours ago

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in a post on X in the early hours of Saturday: 'If President Trump is genuine about wanting a deal, he should put aside the disrespectful and unacceptable tone towards Iran's Supreme Leader, Grand Ayatollah Khamenei, and stop hurting his millions of heartfelt followers.'
Trump also said he had been working on the possible removal of sanctions on Iran in recent days, to give the Middle Eastern country a chance for a speedy recovery. But, he said, he had now abandoned that effort.
'I get hit with a statement of anger, hatred and disgust, and immediately dropped all work on sanction relief, and more,' he said.
The president said on Wednesday that the US and Iran would talk next week and 'may' sign an agreement. Tehran has denied that discussions are scheduled to resume.
Strikes 'without question'
Trump said at a White House news conference that he did not rule out attacking Iran again when asked about the possibility of new bombing of its nuclear sites if deemed necessary.
'Sure, without question, absolutely,' he said.
Trump said he would like inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) – the UN nuclear watchdog – or another respected body to inspect the nuclear facilities after they were bombed last weekend.
The president has rejected any suggestion that the damage to the sites was not as profound as he has said.
Loading
IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said this week that ensuring the resumption of inspections was his top priority as none had taken place since Israel began attacking Iran on June 13.
The IAEA reported in May that Iran had amassed 409 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 per cent – an almost 50 per cent increase from the volume recorded three months prior.
Iran maintains that its nuclear program has no military dimension. But on June 12, the IAEA said Iran had breached its responsibilities to co-operate with inspectors and that the agency was unable to determine whether the country's nuclear program was 'exclusively peaceful'.
The location of Iran's highly enriched uranium is now an open question.
According to Grossi, it was last seen by agency monitors a few days before the start of Israel's bombing campaign, which provoked a halt to inspections.
At that point, the stockpile was at the Isfahan Nuclear Technology and Research Centre, a hub for chemical processes that turn uranium ore into feedstock that can be enriched. This facility in central Iran was targeted by Israel and later the US.
Iran said in a note circulated at the IAEA and dated three weeks before Israel's first strike that in the event of such an attack, Iran would take 'special measures' to move the highly enriched uranium to a fortified location.
After the bombardment began, Grossi said he received a letter from the Iranian foreign minister, saying those measures had been implemented.
Iranian authorities have not responded to Grossi's demands to inform his inspectors of the new location, and on Wednesday, Iran's parliament approved moves to suspend such inspections.
Araqchi also indicated on Friday that Tehran might reject any request by the head of the agency for visits to Iranian nuclear sites.
The risk is that Iran's already near-weapons-grade uranium could be hidden away indefinitely.
According to the IAEA, the amount of uranium Iran is known to have can be stored in 16 cylinders measuring 91.4 centimetres in height, about the size of a large scuba-diving tank. Each one would weigh about 25 kilograms – light enough to be carried on a person's back.