In an official message published Tuesday, the White House emphasized that President Donald Trump "has never deviated from his consistent position that Iran cannot possess nuclear weapons." The document includes dozens of quotes from Trump, spanning from 2011 to the present, demonstrating that opposition to Iran's nuclear program has been a top priority for him both as a sitting president and during his election campaign.
Recent reporting by Axios earlier this month indicated that White House Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff had proposed a sanctions relief deal that "would allow limited low-level uranium enrichment on Iranian soil for a to-be-determined period of time." The proposal reportedly risked creating tensions with Trump allies in Congress and Israeli officials, according to Fox News.
Trump responded directly to the Axios story through his Truth Social platform, declaring that "under our potential Agreement – WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM!" The statement reinforced his long-standing position on the issue.
The Associated Press subsequently reported that Trump's message "appeared to undercut a proposal that was offered" by his administration, noting that Witkoff and the president "have repeatedly offered inconsistent public messages about whether Iran would be allowed to retain the capacity to enrich uranium to lower levels for civilian purposes."
Trump's documented opposition to Iranian nuclear development traces back to his 2011 book "Time to Get Tough," where he wrote that "America's primary goal with Iran must be to destroy its nuclear ambitions." He emphasized in the same publication that "Iran's nuclear program must be stopped by any and all means necessary. Period. We cannot allow this radical regime to acquire a nuclear weapon that they will either use or hand off to terrorists."
The president reinforced this position through social media in 2011, posting that "Iran's nuclear program must be stopped – by any and all means necessary."
During his 2016 presidential campaign, Trump criticized then-President Barack Obama for negotiating what he called "a disastrous deal with Iran," stating that "Iran cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon and, under a Trump Administration, will never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon."
As president in 2017, Trump told NPR that "We will deny the regime all paths to a nuclear weapon."
Throughout the 2024 campaign cycle, Trump repeatedly characterized nuclear proliferation as the primary global threat. In an interview with Patrick Bet-David, he said that "the real threat isn't global warming. The real threat is nuclear warming."
Regarding Iran specifically, Trump stated that "they're very close to having a nuclear weapon" and "I wanted Iran to be very successful. I just don't want them to have a nuclear weapon."
Trump criticized former President Joe Biden's handling of the Iranian nuclear issue, saying Biden "should never have allowed them to get this far. They're way advanced now."
During a campaign rally in Milwaukee in October, Trump declared that "They can't have a nuclear weapon. And now, they're very close to having one, and it's very dangerous for the world, very dangerous for the world. I mean, the biggest problem today, in my opinion, the biggest risk is the nuclear weapons, the weaponry. It's so powerful today."
At a campaign event in Clive, Iowa, Trump said that "They're financing Hamas, and they're financing Hezbollah … they go around, saying, 'Death to Israel. Death to America.' And they chant it openly all over the place. Don't let Iran have nuclear weapons. That's my only thing I have to tell you today. Don't let them have it."
Iranian officials have consistently rejected proposals to halt uranium enrichment, maintaining that the process represents a sovereign right essential for nuclear energy production. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi reiterated this position during a press conference in Egypt on Monday, according to the Tasnim News Agency, indicating he plans to respond to the US proposal soon.
President Donald Trump recently published a message sent to him by US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, who wrote, "Mr. President, God spared you in Butler, PA to be the most consequential President in a century-maybe ever. The decisions on your shoulders I would not want to be made by anyone else. You sent me to Israel to be your eyes, ears and voice and to make sure our flag flies above our embassy. My job is to be the last one to leave. I will not abandon this post. Our flag will NOT come down! You did not seek this moment. This moment sought YOU! It is my honor to serve you!"
