Tehran, Iran – Iran’s nuclear chief has indicated that Tehran could consider diluting its stockpile of 60 percent enriched uranium if all international sanctions imposed on the country are lifted.
Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, said the issue of dilution is conditional on the removal of sanctions, while firmly rejecting suggestions that Iran might transfer enriched uranium outside the country. He described such reports as being driven by external pressure groups and said the matter has not been discussed in ongoing negotiations with the United States.
Iran and the US resumed indirect nuclear talks on Monday in Muscat under Omani mediation, marking the first round of diplomacy in nearly eight months. The negotiations had been suspended following an Israeli strike on Iran that escalated into a brief war last year. Officials from both sides have described the latest discussions as constructive, despite heightened regional tensions and increased US military activity in the Persian Gulf.
Media speculation in recent weeks has focused on Iran’s stockpile of around 400 kilograms of enriched uranium, with reports suggesting Washington has sought its transfer to a third country. Senior Iranian officials have denied any such plan, maintaining that there is no justification for moving the material abroad.
Eslami said Iran continues to engage with the International Atomic Energy Agency under existing safeguards agreements, including discussions related to nuclear facilities struck during US attacks in June 2025. He stressed that the core issue in the negotiations remains Iran’s right to pursue peaceful nuclear technology.
He also criticised the IAEA for not responding publicly to attacks on Iranian nuclear sites that were under international safeguards. Three key facilities — Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz — were hit by US B-2 bombers during the Iran-Israel conflict in June last year. US officials later claimed the strikes had destroyed Iran’s nuclear programme.
Under the 2015 nuclear agreement, Iran was permitted to enrich uranium up to 3.6 percent. The country began increasing enrichment levels after the US withdrew from the deal in 2018, eventually reaching enrichment purity of up to 60 percent.
