Iran's top authority has reportedly decided that its most sensitive nuclear material isn't going anywhere. Two senior Iranian sources tell Reuters that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has ordered that the country's stockpile of near-weapons-grade uranium must stay inside Iran, tightening Tehran's position on a central US and Israeli demand in ongoing peace talks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself has tied that condition to declaring the US-Israeli war over. Iranian officials, however, fear shipping it out would leave the country exposed to future strikes.
The directive comes amid a fragile ceasefire following US-Israeli attacks on Iran in late February and subsequent clashes involving Iran-backed groups. Washington and Tehran have narrowed some differences, sources say, but they remain far apart on Iran's nuclear program and security guarantees. Iran had earlier signaled it might export part of its 60%-enriched stockpile, but that stance shifted after repeated threats of US strikes. Iranian sources floated alternatives, including diluting the uranium under UN nuclear watchdog oversight, as talks continue with deep mistrust on both sides.
Crude futures rose early Thursday on the news of Khamenei's reported uranium stance, per the Wall Street Journal. The AP, meanwhile, notes that other Iranians are taking the supreme leader's lead and exhibiting their own form of defiance, with weapons "now regularly brandished in Tehran." "If necessary, everyone should be available and know how to use a gun," said one resident at a Tuesday weapons training session in the capital.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
