Iran proposes uranium enrichment partnership with UAE, Saudi Arabia

Iran Proposes Regional Uranium Enrichment Consortium with UAE and Saudi Arabia

In a strategic move to revive dialogue over its nuclear programme and reduce tensions with the West, Iran has put forward a proposal to form a regional uranium enrichment consortium. Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are part of the proposed cooperation, which aims to jointly enrich uranium at Iranian facilities in accordance with recognized international rules.

In an effort to promote transparency and regional cooperation, the project directly involves neighboring Gulf states in Iran’s nuclear program. It also seeks to use diplomacy to sidestep U.S. demands that Iran completely halt its enrichment activities. Iran wants to show its nuclear ambitions are peaceful and focused on civilian power generation rather than weaponization by sharing them with regional allies.
The proposed consortium would operate under the terms of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which limited Iran’s uranium enrichment to 3.67% purity—suitable for civilian use. Although Iran has since increased its enrichment levels to 60% following the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 under Donald Trump, Tehran now indicates a willingness to return to prior restrictions, albeit with shared regional oversight.

Diplomatic sources suggest the proposal is gaining attention in Tehran, though it is unclear whether Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi directly presented it during recent U.S.–Iran talks in Oman. Following these discussions, Araghchi traveled to the United Arab Emirates and spoke with the country’s Foreign Minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan. The UAE operates the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant, the first fully operational nuclear power plant in the Arab world, although it is not currently enriching uranium.

The concept of a consortium is not wholly novel. Physicist Frank von Hippel and former Iranian nuclear negotiator Seyed Hossein Mousavian first proposed it in a 2023 paper. They envision Gulf nations like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates becoming financial donors and stakeholders in the enrichment process, as well as getting access to technology and supervision. International worries about the development of nuclear weapons may be lessened by this regional involvement, which might also add another level of accountability.

Gulf engineers from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates might be stationed in Iranian facilities if this plan is put into action. This would provide more visibility and reassure the world that Iran’s program will continue to be peaceful. Inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would be supplemented by this.
Despite U.S. demands for Iran to dismantle its nuclear infrastructure, the Biden administration has yet to reach a consensus, as some officials acknowledge Iran’s cooperation and seriousness in current negotiations. Due to the proposal’s technical intricacy, the negotiations that were first anticipated to conclude in two months are now probably going to take longer.

Iran has stated that it is conditionally open to restrictions on the amount of its stockpile and enrichment level for a predetermined amount of time. Gulf states’ involvement in this process might pave the way for a renewed international nuclear accord while also providing a fresh avenue for fostering regional stability and trust.