The United States is weighing a high-risk military option as tensions with Iran escalate, with a potential operation that could significantly impact the course of the conflict.
WASHINGTON—According to U.S. officials, President Trump is considering a military operation to remove about 1,000 pounds of uranium from Iran. This would be a difficult and dangerous task that would probably need American forces to spend days or more inside Iran.
US Considers High-Risk Uranium Retrieval Operation
⚠️ Operation Overview
- Objective: Remove enriched uranium
- Quantity: ~1,000 pounds
- Risk Level: Extremely high
- Duration: Several days or more
- Challenge: Combat zone extraction
- Status: Under consideration
According to the authorities, Trump has not decided whether to issue the order and is taking the risk to American soldiers into consideration. However, the insiders say the president is still generally open to the concept since it could assist achieve his core objective of keeping Iran from ever developing a nuclear bomb.
According to someone familiar with Trump’s thinking, the president has also urged his advisors to put pressure on Iran to agree to handover the material as a condition of stopping the conflict. In talks with political allies, Trump has made it clear that the Iranians cannot retain the material, and he has talked of taking it by force if Iran refuses to surrender it at the bargaining table.
Diplomatic Efforts and Strategic Pressure
Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan have served as go-betweens between the United States and Iran. However, direct talks to terminate the war have not yet taken place between Washington and Tehran.
The Pentagon’s responsibility is to prepare so that the commander-in-chief has as many options as possible. In a statement, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated, “It does not imply the president has reached a decision.” A representative for U.S. Central Command declined to comment, while the Pentagon remained silent.
Iran’s Nuclear Material and Key Locations
☢️ Nuclear Details
- 60% Uranium: ~400 kg
- 20% Material: ~200 kg
- Main Sites: Natanz & Isfahan
- Capability: Advanced enrichment
- Risk: Weapon-grade potential
- Concern: Global security threat
Iran was thought to possess about 400 kilograms of 60% highly enriched uranium and nearly 200 kilos of 20% fissile material, which is easily turned into 90% weapons-grade uranium, prior to Israel and the United States carrying out a series of airstrikes on the country in June of last year.
Rafael Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, stated that he believes the uranium is mostly at two of the three locations that Israel and the United States targeted in June: a cache at Natanz and an underground tunnel at the nuclear plant in Isfahan. According to experts, the Iranians possess centrifuges for uranium enrichment and the capacity to establish a new underground enrichment facility.
Operational Challenges and Military Risks
According to the person familiar with the discussions, the president and at least some of his allies have stated in private that it would be possible to seize the material in a targeted operation that would not materially prolong the war’s timeline and still allow the United States to end the conflict by mid-April.
Trump has expressed his desire to avoid a protracted conflict to his associates. His closest advisors want him to concentrate on other issues, such as the upcoming midterm elections, where polls indicate Republicans may lose badly.
Complexity of the Proposed Mission
During a speech in Miami on Friday, Trump brought up Iran’s uranium, saying that it was a major factor in the war’s outbreak. “I refer to it as the nuclear dust,” Trump declared.
According to analysts and retired U.S. military personnel, any attempt to take the uranium by force would be perilous and complicated, making it one of Trump’s most difficult orders. The possible operation may extend the war far beyond the four to six weeks that Trump’s team has officially stated, and it would probably result in Iranian retaliation.
Execution Strategy and Ground Operations
Teams of American soldiers would have to fly to the locations, probably under attack from Iranian drones and surface-to-air missiles. When combat soldiers arrived on the scene, they had to secure the perimeter so that engineers using excavation equipment could look for mines and booby traps by searching through the wreckage.
An elite special operations team with specialized training in removing radioactive material from a combat zone would probably be required to extract the stuff. There are probably 40 to 50 unique cylinders that resemble diving tanks that hold the highly enriched uranium. To prevent mishaps, they would have to be placed in transportation casks. According to Richard Nephew, a senior research scholar at Columbia University and a former nuclear negotiator with Iran, that may fill multiple trucks.
Logistical Requirements and Timeline
In the absence of an airfield, a temporary one would have to be established in order to transport equipment and remove the radioactive waste. According to experts, the full procedure would take days or possibly a week to finish.
Retired General Joseph Votel, a former leader of U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command, stated, “This is not a quick in and out kind of deal.”
Past Precedents and Diplomatic Alternatives
If Iran agrees to give up its uranium as part of a peace deal, U.S. troops could avoid such a risky mission. In the past, the United States has peacefully transferred enriched uranium from a foreign nation. In a project known as Project Sapphire, the United States extracted uranium from Kazakhstan in 1994. In 1998, the United States and Great Britain participated in an effort to extract highly enriched uranium from a reactor close to the Georgian city of Tbilisi. They transported it to a nuclear facility in Scotland.
Trump has refrained from making it clear whether or not he will order the uranium-retrieval operation. He encouraged his social media followers to watch Mark Levin’s Fox News program on Saturday, where the conservative pundit urged Trump “to grab the uranium.”
Military Preparedness and Strategic Options
Trump has urged Iran to terminate its nuclear program as part of a negotiated agreement in an effort to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict over the past week. Last Monday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that the United States can accomplish its main goals without the use of ground forces.
According to U.S. sources, Iran is not currently enriching uranium; in order to become a nuclear weapons state, it would need to enrich it to weapons grade and construct a bomb or warhead. The Defense Intelligence Agency predicted last year that Iran would have dozens of intercontinental ballistic missiles by 2035 if it decides to modify its space launch vehicle. Iran currently lacks an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States.
Troop Deployment and Future Scenarios
According to U.S. sources, Trump is being briefed on the difficulties of the uranium operation while the military continues to strike targets in Iran.
In the event that the president issues an order, the military is also getting ready for other possibilities, such as deploying paratroopers and quick-response Marine troops. According to a U.S. official, the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division in the area has the potential to capture key sites like an island off the southern coast of Iran.
According to U.S. officials, the Pentagon is thinking about sending an extra 10,000 ground troops to give the president more options in the fight and has many of the resources in the area required to carry out a uranium extraction if ordered.
US Defense Strategy and Final Position
When asked what the United States intended to do with Iran’s enriched uranium during a Pentagon press conference earlier this month, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he hoped Tehran would agree to give it up, but he also implied that the U.S. military had alternatives to grab it if Iran refused.
On March 13, Hegseth stated, “The president has maintained his eye focused on nuclear capability.” “We have a number of choices, including Iran choosing to give those up, which we would naturally welcome.”
“We have alternatives, for sure, but I would never tell this group or the world what we are willing to do or how far we are willing to go,” Hegseth continued.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and reflects ongoing geopolitical developments. Military strategies and decisions are subject to change.
