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Posted on 05/25/2026 8:30:44 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
President Donald Trump made an important post late Monday afternoon about the highly enriched uranium that has been the focus of the deal he's been trying to achieve with Iran.
Trump said that the stockpile would either have to be handed over to the U.S. or be destroyed under supervision as part of the agreement.
“The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location, with the Atomic Energy Commission, or its equivalent, being witness to this process and event,” the president said in a post on Truth Social.
That's an interesting and important comment because it indicates that Trump and the U.S. are tightening up on the details.
There had been some prior discussion from Iran about the uranium going to a third country. But the problem with a third country would be, could you trust that they would not just send it back to Iran or even keep it for themselves for bad purposes? And you can't have that.
At the same time, we were still seeing some maneuvering from Iran. As we reported, Iran was trying to walk back calling for "tolls" on the Strait and repackage them with more legally acceptable language. President Masoud Pezeshkian was also firing off some inflammatory language.
READ MORE: Iran Now Walking Back and Repackaging One of Their Demands, Sounding Like Dems
Trump-Iran Deal on Edge as Tehran Vows 'Mass Sacrifice' and Total Resistance
Meanwhile, there were reported explosions in Bandar Abbas and a couple of other coastal areas, Sirik and Jask. We've seen that before when the regime tried to fire on U.S. warships.
Now, U.S. Central Command is confirming these were self-defense strikes.
🚨 BREAKING: The United States has carried out "SELF-DEFENSE STRIKES" in Bandar Abbas, Iran, per US Central Command
The strikes targeted missile launch strikes and fast boars attempting to lay mines, CENTCOM said pic.twitter.com/0AIHQjn6h3— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) May 25, 2026
“U.S. forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” Capt. Tim Hawkins, a CENTCOM spokesperson, said.
“Targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace mines. U.S. Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” Hawkins said.
According to a senior U.S. official, two Iranian boats were spotted laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, while forces also responded after a missile site had targeted U.S. warplanes.
The strikes took out Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) boats. They also hit the SAM, or surface-to-air missile, site in Bandar Abbas.
CENTCOM indicated that the strikes were over for now and were not an indication that the ceasefire was over.
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UF6 is “dust”?
In context, “nuclear dust” is Trump’s label for Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, much of which is believed to be buried under rubble at facilities bombed by the U.S. in 2025 (Operation Midnight Hammer).
Of course, Reporting makes clear this material is not literally dust; it is enriched uranium – mainly in gaseous form inside large canisters – that can be close to weapons‑grade and remains hazardous and reactive.
The term appears crafted to downplay the seriousness of the material and to imply that Iran’s nuclear program has been so thoroughly bombed that only a powdery residue remains beneath collapsed mountains.
Well, so much for the talk of a ceasefire agreement.
Don't smoke that stuff, man.
How do you destroy it?
For the thread 🧵🧵🧵
AI Overview:
uranium hexafluoride (\(UF_{6}\)), often called “hex,” is the primary material used in the process of creating fuel for both nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. While it is not the final material inside a bomb, it is the essential “feedstock” that allows uranium to be enriched to weapons-grade levels.
I think they are calling it dust so they can use the slogan No Dust, No Dollars’
.
Just curious—how does one destroy enriched uranium anyway?
Just in case I ever need to.
It is called downmixing, I think. You blend one part highly enriched uranium with about a hundred parts natural uranium, and mix thoroughly.
Obviously it doesn’t destroy the uranium, but it undoes the enrichment.
To destroy the uranium, you would have to build a bomb out of it and set it off.
‘hoobie dust’!!?
Per AI...
“Military action often continues during a ceasefire when it falls under legally recognized exceptions, most notably self-defense, naval blockades, or counter-operations against groups not party to the agreement. Congress.gov +2”
San Remo Manual on International Law Applicable to Armed Conflicts at Sea, 12 June 1994
The short answer: you don’t “destroy” enriched uranium in the sense of making it vanish — you either physically seize it, render it unusable, or force it into a chemical/physical state that cannot be quickly re‑enriched.
Enriched uranium — whether 20%, 60%, or weapons‑grade — is just uranium metal or uranium hexafluoride (UF₆). It’s not explosive by itself. The danger is its potential to be further enriched or used in a weapon design.
So the real question becomes: How do you eliminate that potential?
There are only three strategic pathways, each with different implications.
1. Physical removal (the safest and most common in real-world arms control)
This is what happened in:
Libya (2003)
Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus (1990s)
Iraq (post‑1991)
The enriched uranium is:
Collected, Placed in shielded transport cylinders, Shipped to a secure facility (usually in Russia or the U.S.), Down‑blended into low‑enriched reactor fuel.
This is the gold standard because it:
Eliminates breakout capability
Avoids contamination
Preserves civilian nuclear infrastructure
2. Down‑blending (turning it back into harmless reactor-grade material).
Enriched uranium can be chemically mixed with natural or depleted uranium to reduce its U‑235 concentration.
For example:
60% U‑235 + large mass of natural uranium → <5% reactor fuel
This is slow and equipment‑intensive.
3. Destruction of the material’s form (not the uranium atoms themselves)
But, but, but …. You cannot destroy uranium atoms with conventional explosives.
You can only:
Scatter them
Contaminate them
Convert them into a chemical form that is unusable.
Get over your TDS, “Doc” - Trump is trying to do it the humanitarian way and Iran keeps insisting on being hurt some more.
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