Trump says Iran promised to halt uranium enrichment, deal terms unclear

Donald Trump said Iran had promised to suspend uranium enrichment, but he left open the most important detail: for how long. That ambiguity matters because enrichment is the technical step that can move Iran closer to weapons-grade material, and the unresolved terms now define whether the diplomacy is a real deal or just a pause.

Trump’s position has shifted in public view. On May 15, 2026, he said a 20-year moratorium on Iran’s nuclear program would be enough for him to strike a deal, even as he also said Iran could not have any nuclear capacity of any form. He added that a real 20 years could work if there were a “real” guarantee. That was a notable change from his earlier insistence that Iran never be allowed to enrich uranium at all.

The gap between rhetoric and mechanism is already visible in the language around the uranium stockpile. Trump said Iran’s inventory remained roughly 440 kilograms of highly enriched uranium, and Western officials have treated that material as a central sticking point. If enrichment is suspended but the stockpile remains intact, the core technical problem is deferred, not solved.

On May 24, 2026, CBS News reported that Iran had agreed in principle to dispose of highly enriched uranium, but no final agreement had been signed. The arrangement under discussion was described as a two-step process: opening the Strait of Hormuz immediately in exchange for lifting a U.S. blockade, followed by later negotiations over nuclear issues. The sequence would let each side claim progress while postponing the hardest decisions, including disposal or dilution of the uranium stockpile and any verification regime.

That is why the missing text of any agreement matters. As of June 15, 2026, the full terms had not been published, and initial details suggested the most contentious issues were being pushed into later talks. Daniel B. Shapiro said there was no agreement yet beyond negotiations over the highly enriched uranium stockpile and an enrichment moratorium.

The talks have also drawn in Vice President JD Vance, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner. A previous U.S. proposal reportedly called for a 20-year moratorium, while Iran countered with a five-year pause, underscoring how far apart the sides remain on duration, enforcement, and what happens to the uranium already on hand. Even if a framework emerges, Iran’s supreme leader would still need to approve it before any final deal could take effect.