- Iran’s supreme leader orders that weapons-grade uranium reserves must remain in Iran
- This directive reflects the consensus among the Iranian establishment
As a reminder, the US wants Iran to completely remove or deactivate its near-weapons-grade uranium stockpile. And this issue has been a major point of contention since the beginning of the war. Trump has made it clear that he wants to completely halt Iran’s enrichment program and has made clear that simply limiting or stopping future enrichment is not enough.
That being said, the latest stance here is no different from what it has been for the past few weeks.
If you remember, whatever the US and Iran are negotiating regarding the peace resolution is partly just a framework agreement. At best, it will only serve to facilitate nuclear discussion related to the above issue.
So even if there is a breakthrough in the talks, just be reminded that all this is primarily in preparation for the main talks on the uranium situation. And in turn, there is still a huge gap that the US and Iran cannot bridge. The above situation continues to reflect that difference.
Risk sentiment has come into the spotlight with S&P 500 futures now down 0.3%. Oil prices have also increased due to this news, with WTI crude now rising from around $97.80 to above $100. At the same time, the 10-year Treasury yield is now rising to 4.61% and gold is falling 0.7% to $4,512.
