ALBAWABA - Iran's Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, refused to remove uranium enriched to a high degree from Tehran, Reuters reported Thursday, citing two sources.
Khamenei issued a directive that the near-weapons-grade uranium should not be sent outside the country, two senior Iranian sources confirmed.
It is worth mentioning that Tehran's enriched uranium is one of the greatest disputed points between the United States and Iran, hardening peace talks and obstructing the reaching of a final deal to end the war.
Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei's order could pressure President Donald Trump and complicate talks between the two countries, Reuters reported.
Israeli officials told Reuters that the U.S. leader has assured Tel Aviv that Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which is used to make an atomic weapon, should be transferred out of Tehran to finalize a deal.
Enriched uranium. (Shutterstock)
Moreover, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed the importance of removing enriched uranium as a way to consider the war over, in addition to Tehran's commitment to end its support for groups in the Middle East, and its ballistic missile capabilities should be eliminated.
"The Supreme Leader’s directive, and the consensus within the establishment, is that the stockpile of enriched uranium should not leave the country," said one of the two Iranian sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
The sources revealed that Iran's top officials believe that sending the material abroad would leave the country more vulnerable to future attacks by Washington and Tel Aviv.
