On Friday, speaking to the media on Air Force One, President Trump delivered a stern message to Iran regarding their peace proposals: If they mention nuclear capacity in any form, he throws the letter away.
.@POTUS on Iran's latest proposal: "I looked at it, and if I don't like the first sentence, I just throw it away... if they have any nuclear of any form, I don't read the rest of their letter." pic.twitter.com/Kjm8nLAwBf
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 15, 2026
The president said:
Unknown questioner: Have you rejected the latest proposal from Iran, or where does that stand?
President Trump: Well, I looked at it, and if I don't like the first sentence, I just throw it away.
Questioner: What was the first sentence?
President Trump: An unacceptable sentence. Because they're fully agreed, no nuclear. And if they have any nuclear of any form, I don't read the rest of their letter.
Questioner: So, 20 years is not enough for you? It's got to be permanent?
President Trump: No, 20 years is enough. But the level of guarantee from them is not enough, in other words. It's got to be a real 20 years, not a fake...
Questioner: It means you've gotta get all the fuel out and no more production.
President Trump: We have to get everything. We're not even talking about... I call it the nuclear dust. Came up with a term which seems to have caught on.
Questioner: (inaudible) Because they would not remove the...
President Trump: They said that they can't remove it because they don't have the technology to remove it. They don't have the type of tractors. They say the only one.. they told me directly. They said the only ones that can remove it is China or the US. We're the only ones with the equipment. They said you were right. It is a complete obliteration. With that being said, I want to get it. And they agreed to do it, but then took it back. But they'll agree to it eventually.
Trump referenced "nuclear dust," a phrase he coined for Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium buried beneath bombed nuclear sites after U.S. strikes. The U.S. wants the material removed or confiscated, but Trump told reporters the Iranians have not yet agreed.
There's one point in this that stands out: China.
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Note that Iran is (finally) agreeing that their previous nuclear capacity is buried under tons of rubble, and that its nuclear material is beyond its reach. President Trump then notes that they claim only two countries have the capacity to uncover and retrieve the material: The United States and China. Are they leaving the door open for their primary oil customer, China, to retrieve and remove that material rather than the United States? That's an interesting notion, and it's an alternative that may be acceptable to the mullahs. It may represent a solution to the thorny Iran/nuclear problem - or it would, if we could trust China not to work any back-door deals with the Iranians.
Whether it would be acceptable to President Trump is yet another thing.
Editor's Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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