US Offered Uranium to Iran for Civilian Nuclear Programme, Says Mike Waltz

As part of previous negotiations aimed at ending its war on Iran, the United States offered to sell Tehran uranium for use in a civilian programme, but Iran refused, a top US official said on Sunday.

“Heck, our negotiators even offered to sell them uranium,” US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said on NBC’s Meet the Press. He stated that the agreement would have been comparable to that with the United Arab Emirates, which maintains a peaceful programme while abiding by international law and inspection regimes.

Waltz noted that the administration of US President Donald Trump remained open to allowing Iran to keep a civilian nuclear programme, provided it agreed to its obligations under international law and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Various avenues are being considered by President Trump to ensure Iran does not access or reconstitute highly enriched uranium, including requiring Tehran to hand over any existing material, according to Waltz.

The UAE, a signatory to the NPT, generates electricity from a nuclear power plant and signed an agreement with the US in 2009, committing not to produce enriched uranium domestically or reprocess spent fuel independently. Meanwhile, President Trump noted that Saudi Arabia and the US reached an agreement on civilian nuclear use this year, though details remain unpublished and linked to Riyadh potentially agreeing to the Abraham Accords.

Regional nations such as Egypt and Turkiye also operate civilian nuclear programmes. Concurrently, Pakistan operates a nuclear arsenal, and Israel is widely believed to possess one secretly; neither country has signed the NPT.

A core disagreement between Iran and the US centers on the fate of Tehran’s existing uranium and how to prevent future supplies from being used for nuclear weapons. Iran maintains that its uranium enrichment is strictly for civilian purposes, including electricity generation, medical treatments, and scientific research. Estimates suggest Iran holds over 440kg (970lb) of uranium enriched to 60 percent purity, while weapons-grade enrichment requires approximately 90 percent purity.

Under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran previously capped enrichment at 3.67 percent under international oversight in exchange for sanctions relief. President Trump withdrew the US from the deal in 2018.

On September 10, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) expressed concern over Iran’s ongoing noncompliance with the NPT. The IAEA has lacked access to key Iranian nuclear facilities since June 2025, following US and Israeli attacks during a 12-day war. Iranian officials countered that the IAEA finding was driven by political pressure from the US and its allies, maintaining that treaty obligations are respected but inspections cannot resume until facilities are secure.

President Trump has periodically threatened to destroy or seize Iran’s enriched uranium by force, though Iranian officials have dismissed claims that enriched uranium would ever be transferred out of the country.

Addressing regional tensions, President Trump rejected a recent plan submitted by Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, asserting that Tehran seeks a deal solely because it is losing the conflict. In response, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on Meet the Press that Iran is prepared for a prolonged conflict, adding that while he sees no immediate reason to return to diplomacy, he continues to pursue peaceful avenues where possible.