President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said Monday on Fox News that Iranian negotiators bragged to him that Iran had enough enriched uranium to make nearly a dozen nuclear bombs.
The account fits a key piece of the administration’s evolving rationale for joining with Israel to preemptively strike Iran: Trump himself has said he believes the Iranian regime was close to having nuclear weapons, as well as missiles capable of carrying them to the United States.
“In that first meeting, both the Iranian negotiators said to us directly, with no shame, that they controlled 460 kilograms of 60%,” Witkoff said in the Fox interview, referring to the uranium’s level of enrichment. “And they’re aware that that could make 11 nuclear bombs, and that was the beginning of their negotiating stance.”
“They were proud of it,” Witkoff added. “They were proud that they had evaded all sorts of oversight protocols to get to a place where they could deliver 11 nuclear bombs.”
However, a Persian Gulf diplomat with direct knowledge of the talks told MS NOW that Witkoff’s description of the conversation was false.
The Iranians told Witkoff that Iran was willing to give up the enriched uranium as part of a new agreement with Trump, according to the Persian Gulf diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The Iranians also told Witkoff that Iran enriched the uranium after Trump pulled out of a 2017 nuclear agreement brokered by the Obama administration.
“I can categorically state that this is inaccurate,” said the diplomat, referring to Witkoff’s account. “He was explaining that all of this material can all go away should we have a deal and Iran can be relieved from sanctions.”
Anna Kelly, a White House spokesperson, dismissed the claims.
“Only MSDNC would allow themselves to be used and abused by the evil Iranian regime to push false, anti-American propaganda in order to attack President Trump,” Kelly said. “The President and special envoy Witkoff have always worked in good faith in order to eliminate threats posed to our homeland.
“Unfortunately, Iran refused to participate in serious negotiations with the United States,” Kelly added, “so the President took courageous action to destroy their ability to have a nuclear weapon, launch or produce ballistic missiles, or arm terrorist proxies.”
The starkly different accounts of how the negotiations unfolded appear to reflect long-running tensions and mistrust between Witkoff and Iranian officials. The public airing of the dispute could also complicate efforts to negotiate a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran in a conflict that has now spread to a dozen countries in the Middle East.
In a call with reporters Tuesday, senior Trump administration officials speaking on condition of anonymity said the Iranians never offered to significantly compromise. Their proposals would have allowed Iran to continue to pursue a nuclear bomb, the U.S. officials said, and Iranian negotiators refused to discuss their country’s ballistic missiles and its funding of proxy groups, two vital issues for the Trump administration.
A second person with knowledge of the talks confirmed that Iranian officials declined to discuss their country’s ballistic missiles and its funding of proxy groups with Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, and said those issues could be discussed in regional talks.
The first round of talks, held on Feb. 6 in Muscat, Oman, was primarily conducted indirectly, according to the Persian Gulf diplomat. Omani intermediaries held separate meetings with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and then with Witkoff and Kushner.
The Omanis later brought Witkoff, Kushner and Araghchi together in person at the end of the day, and they briefly exchanged pleasantries.








