U.S. Plans to Eventually Remove Iran’s Enriched Uranium, Rubio Says

The United States will ultimately remove Iran’s highly enriched uranium despite the regime’s resistance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday.

In an interview with Vishu Som of NDTV, the top diplomat assured that the extraction is “very doable” from a technical standpoint, but Tehran has refused to discuss it.

Rubio cited the recent removal of highly enriched uranium from Venezuela with assistance from the United Kingdom and the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Noting that Iran’s tough stance needs to change, Rubio emphasized that the issue will be addressed anyway, even though Washington prefers a diplomatic solution.

“Our preference remains by far to be able to negotiate our way through this and arrive at an agreement,” he said. “But we’re going to solve it one way or the other.”

Speaking about the Strait of Hormuz stalemate that has precipitated a global energy crisis, Rubio insists the situation cannot become the status quo or continue indefinitely.

“The straits cannot continue to be closed. It is illegal,” he declared. “They are basically threatening and have fired upon commercial vessels.”

The Secretary stressed that it is unlawful for a country to take international waterways, turn them into its own, and charge a toll for it, as Iran is attempting to do.

Rubio reiterated the Trump Administration’s stance that “Iran can never have a nuclear weapon,” saying the issues of enrichment and highly enriched uranium must be confronted.