In brief: Iran reiterated its refusal to send its enriched nuclear material abroad on Tuesday, including to Russia, which reportedly offered to store the material on multiple occasions during calls with Washington. While Tehran is said to possess 440.9 kg (972 lbs) of uranium enriched to above civilian grade before the US’s June 2025 strikes, it remains unclear how much of the material survived.
Tehran has rejected sending its enriched nuclear materials abroad – including to Russia, despite Moscow’s repeated offers.
Iranian security chief Mohsen Rezaei reiterated Tehran’s position in an interview with Lebanon’s pro-Iranian Al Mayadeen TV, adding that it has informed its ally Moscow of the decision.
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“We told our Russian friends that the enriched materials will remain in Iran, and we will use them ourselves,” Rezaei was quoted as saying, as reported by Russian state media RIA Novosti.
“We will not remove a single atom of enriched nuclear material from Iran,” he added.
Reuters, citing estimates from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), reported that Iran had 440.9 kg (972 lbs) of uranium enriched to 60% as of June 2025, when the US launched Operation Midnight Hammer that targeted multiple storage sites in Iran.
The outlet noted that the percentage exceeds civilian use, but it’s unclear how much of the material survived after the June 2025 attack.
Tehran has denied that it’s seeking to build nuclear weapons.
Rezaei also warned of targeting foreign US bases if Washington resumes strikes on Iran, according to Reuters.
Russia’s earlier proposals to safeguard Iran’s nuclear material
In March 2026, days after the war in Iran broke out, Russian leader Vladimir Putin reportedly proposed storing Iran’s material during a phone call with US President Donald Trump, according to Axios.
Trump launched the war on Feb. 28 and said the goal is to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, despite claiming to have “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear site after the June 2025 operation.
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Axios said Trump turned down Putin’s offer.
In May, Tehran’s supreme leader reportedly issued a directive to ban the sending of its enriched uranium abroad.
In October, Putin reportedly told Trump the offer remained open during a phone call, according to state media TASS. The Russian ambassador to Iran reportedly reiterated the offer in November.
On Tuesday, Trump said the war in Iran is “effectively over” militarily but hinted at continued economic pressure on Tehran.
Moscow remains a major backer for Iran, pledging eight more nuclear reactors for the latter in late October, in addition to the supply of 90 helicopter-mounted launchers for precision-guided missiles unveiled in early November.
Kyiv also accuses Russia of aiding Iran’s strikes on US and Middle Eastern bases by providing satellite data needed for the attacks.
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