WASHINGTON — Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed transferring Iran’s enriched uranium to Russia during a phone call with US President Donald Trump this week as part of a potential deal to end the war, but Trump rejected the proposal, Axios reported Friday.Putin raised several proposals during the call on Monday aimed at ending the war between the United States and Iran, including a plan to move Iran’s enriched uranium to Russia.“This is not the first time it was offered. It hasn’t been accepted. The U.S. position is we need to see the uranium secured,” a U.S. official told Axios.Russia has not commented on the latest conversation between Trump and Putin. However, Moscow had previously floated similar proposals during U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations in May 2025.The proposal was also discussed again in the weeks leading up to the current war that began on Feb. 28, before the United States and Israel struck Iran’s nuclear facilities in June.Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said during a press briefing earlier this year that the offer remained “on the table.”During the final round of talks before the war began, Iran rejected the proposal to transfer its enriched uranium abroad.Tehran instead suggested diluting the material at its own facilities under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency.“The president talks to everyone — Xi, Putin, the Europeans — and he’s always willing to make a deal. But it has to be a good deal. The president doesn’t make bad deals,” the U.S. official said.Trump also acknowledged for the first time that Russia may be assisting Iran in the war, following reports that Moscow has been providing intelligence to help target U.S. forces.“I think he might be helping them a little bit, yeah, I guess,” Trump told Fox News when asked whether Putin was aiding Iran.“And he probably thinks we’re helping Ukraine, right? … Yeah, we’re helping them, also,” he added.According to U.S. media reports, Russia has been providing Iran with intelligence on the locations of U.S. military assets in the Middle East, including warships and aircraft.
Keep Up to Date with our Weekly Newsletter
