During a press briefing, in response to a question regarding Ali Shamkhani’s threat of expelling IAEA inspectors, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce stated:
“First of all, these actions – the threat of that kind of action, of course, is inconsistent with Iran’s claims of a peaceful nuclear program. All right? Also, expelling IAEA inspectors from Iran would be an escalation and a miscalculation on Iran’s part. The United States remains deeply concerned that Iran is amassing a growing stockpile of highly enriched uranium for which there is no credible peaceful purpose. Iran is the only non-nuclear weapon state producing highly enriched uranium at this level.
Also, beyond the threat to expel the international nuclear inspectors but also threatening to transfer its stock of uranium to secret locations – and again, why would one need to do that if it was for peaceful energy work? It doesn’t make much sense. So again, it is an escalation and a miscalculation on Iran’s part if they were to do so.”