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US to recover uranium from Iran, Trump tells Reuters

Jessica Koscielniak
Jessica Koscielniak
Apr 17, 2026
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media, as he departs the White House for Las Vegas, Nevada, in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 16, 2026. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media, as he departs the White House for Las Vegas, Nevada, in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 16, 2026. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak — Jessica Koscielniak

WASHINGTON, April 17 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump told Reuters on Friday that the U.S. will work with Iran to recover its enriched uranium and bring it back to the United States.

"We're going to get it together. We're going to go in with Iran, at a nice leisurely pace, and go down and start excavating with big machinery... We'll bring it back to the United States," Trump said during a phone interview.

He referred to "nuclear dust" and addedthat it would be retrieved "very soon."

Trump's mention of "nuclear dust" is a reference to what he believes remains after the United States and Israel bombed Iran's nuclear installations in June last year.

(Reporting by Steve Holland; Writing by Katharine Jackson; editing by Michelle Nichols)