On Wednesday, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth issued a stark warning to Iran, demanding the surrender of its enriched uranium. He warned that failure to comply could prompt President Trump to initiate another “Operation Midnight Hammer” to confiscate the material.
The cease-fire agreement between the U.S. and Iran, which has been in effect for two weeks, does not tackle the issue of nearly 1,000 pounds of highly enriched uranium currently held by Tehran. Hegseth assured reporters that the U.S. is determined to secure this atomic material by any means necessary.
“We’ll get it. We’ll take it, we’ll take it out,” Hegseth asserted about the uranium, emphasizing the commitment to fulfill one of President Trump’s key objectives in the conflict.
He hinted at the possibility of another operation similar to the U.S.-Israeli joint airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities from the previous year. “Or if we have to do something else ourselves, like we did Midnight Hammer or something like that, we reserve that opportunity,” he stated.
Hegseth made it unequivocally clear that they would ensure Iran never possesses a nuclear weapon or the means to develop one.
Beyond the threat of further airstrikes, Hegseth also suggested the potential deployment of Special Operations forces into Iran with the mission of seizing the uranium.
“If we have to, we can do it by any means necessary,” he said.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Iran’s uranium stockpile is the president’s “red line.”
“This is on the top of the priority list for the president and his negotiating team as they head into these next round of discussions,” she told reporters.
“This is a red line that the president is not going to back away from, and he’s committed to ensuring that takes place. We hope it will be through diplomacy.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which serves as the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, said Iran had about 970 pounds of highly enriched uranium prior to last year’s 12-Day War.
The uranium stockpiles are believed to be housed in Iran’s underground facilities in Isfahan and Natanz, according to IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.
Isfahan, located 270 miles south of Tehran, is believed to be where the majority of Tehran’s 60% enriched uranium is located, with Natanz likely holding additional caches of uranium in its fortified Pickaxe Mountain facility.
Iranian officials have maintained that the uranium, believed to be enriched at 60%, remains buried under the rubble following last year’s airstrikes.
Trump suggested that the US could work together with Iran to “dig up and remove” the uranium, which experts warn could be used to develop a handful of nuclear weapons if it reaches the 90% enrichment threshold.
“There will be no enrichment of Uranium, and the United States will, working with Iran, dig up and remove all of the deeply buried (B-2 Bombers) Nuclear ‘Dust,’” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“It is now, and has been, under very exacting Satellite Surveillance (Space Force!). Nothing has been touched from the date of the attack,” he added.
