Iranian calls for nuclear weapons grow as fate of 440.9 kilograms of uranium remains unclear
Key Facts
Calls by Iranian hardliners to acquire nuclear weapons have intensified, according to the Financial Times, while the fate of a stockpile of 440.9 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60% purity remains an unresolved issue in assessments of Iran's programme. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported the size of the stockpile in October 2026, alongside public calls to produce weapons. Among those making such calls is Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani, a member of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee. Ardestani said his country had already paid the price for its nuclear programme, declaring that "the time has come to produce weapons". His stance comes as Washington insists that any agreement include a reduction in Iran's uranium enrichment capacity. U.S. Vice President JD Vance described the required reduction as "substantial", according to the same report.
The calls for nuclear armament face opposition within Iran's leadership, including from Mohammad Mokhber, a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. Mokhber said control of the Strait of Hormuz provided Iran with deterrence and removed the need to possess a bomb, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. He argued that expanding the conflict regionally also served as a source of deterrence, saying Iran "does not need an atomic bomb". Stating the official position, President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran had already agreed not to develop nuclear weapons, according to Reuters, citing his interview with "Face the Nation". Pezeshkian added: "We are not supposed to develop nuclear weapons." Iranian authorities had cited Ali Khamenei's fatwa banning the development of weapons of mass destruction to affirm the civilian nature of their nuclear programme.
On the diplomatic front, U.S. President Donald Trump publicly rejected the Iranian proposal on 26 September 2026, saying he wanted to reach an agreement but "that agreement will not be acceptable", according to the Associated Press. The proposal tied the reopening of Hormuz and the resumption of nuclear talks within 7 days to the fulfilment of reciprocal Iranian conditions. These included lifting the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports and exempting oil sales from sanctions, alongside a ceasefire covering Lebanon. The seven-day deadline applies to implementing steps to reopen the strait and resume nuclear negotiations. An official familiar with the negotiations told Reuters the disagreement "centres more on the sequencing of implementation than on the components of the plan". This was preceded by a memorandum of understanding agreed in June that led to a brief ceasefire. The memorandum included provisions concerning the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's nuclear programme, according to Reuters.
In the Strait of Hormuz, oil tankers continued to transit under U.S. military protection despite escalating attacks, according to Lloyd's List Intelligence, as cited by the Associated Press. The system of transporting oil in tankers moving under this protection helped restore Gulf shipments to levels close to those before the war. But the recovery in flows came at a high cost in time, money and seafarers' lives, according to the agency. In Iran, annual inflation reached 73.6% in September, according to the Statistical Centre of Iran, as cited by Reuters, amid economic pressures accompanying the confrontation. The costs of the war also extended to U.S. consumers, with airfares rising about 22% in September from the same month a year earlier, according to the consumer price index reported by the Associated Press.
In October, both the U.S. and Iranian sides acknowledged that indirect discussions were continuing after Trump rejected the proposal, according to the Associated Press. Mediators are seeking to bring them back to formal talks. Iranian officials, however, told Reuters that prospects for a breakthrough before the U.S. midterm elections were slim. The officials attributed this to Tehran's refusal to make concessions before the elections. They said Iran's leadership believed such concessions would benefit Trump politically.