Trump: Retrieving Iran's Uranium Stockpiles to Be Difficult

President Donald Trump stated on Monday that retrieving Iran's stockpiles of highly enriched uranium, which he refers to as "nuclear dust," would be a long and difficult process following U.S. military strikes on Tehran's nuclear facilities. The comments, posted on his Truth Social platform, came amid escalating tensions in the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran, with a fragile ceasefire set to expire on Wednesday.

Trump described Operation Midnight Hammer, a series of U.S. airstrikes launched in June 2025 during a 12-day war initiated by Israel, as a "complete and total obliteration" of key Iranian nuclear sites, including the enrichment facilities at Natanz and Fordow and the conversion plant at Isfahan. Those attacks, supported by bunker-buster bombs from B-2 stealth bombers, targeted underground infrastructure where experts believe Iran stores much of its enriched uranium. The United States and Israel followed up with joint strikes on February 28, 2026, aimed at preventing Tehran from rebuilding its nuclear capabilities. Israeli officials described the actions as necessary to neutralize an existential threat from Iran's program.