US President Donald Trump has recently been considering an attack on Iran's uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, the New York Times reported Tuesday.
Trump made the request during an Oval Office meeting on Thursday with his top national security aides, including Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, new acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller and General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a US official said.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
The meeting was held a day after a UN watchdog report showed that Iran continued to violate the 2015 nuclear deal, from which Trump withdrew in 2018, by moving advanced centrifuges from an above-ground site to one located underground.
"He asked for options. They gave him the scenarios and he ultimately decided not to go forward," the official said. The White House declined comment.
According to the NYT, Trump decided to back off from the idea for fear that a strike would lead to a wider conflict in the weeks before his term in office was due to end.
Throughout his presidency, Trump has urged an aggressive policy against Iran, and in 2018 withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal.
Alireza Miryousefi, spokesman for Iran's mission to the United Nations in New York, said Iran's nuclear program was purely for peaceful purposes and civilian use and Trump's policies have not changed that. "However, Iran has proven to be capable of using its legitimate military might to prevent or respond to any melancholy adventure from any aggressor," he added.
Iran's 2.4-ton stock of low-enriched uranium is now far above the deal's 202.8 kg limit. It produced 337.5 kg in the quarter, less than the more than 500 kg recorded in the previous two quarters by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
