Donald Trump has turned down a proposal from Russian President Vladimir Putin to transfer Iran's enriched uranium to Russia as part of a potential deal to end the US and Israel's conflict with Tehran, according to Axios.
The offer was made during a phone call between the two leaders this week, but Trump reportedly declined it. The rejection comes amid Trump's admission that Putin may be assisting Iran in its military efforts against the United States.
In an interview with Fox News, Trump said, 'I think he might be helping them a little bit, yeah, I guess, and he probably thinks we’re helping Ukraine, right? So he says that, and China would say the same thing... It’s like, hey, they do it and we do it, in all fairness.'
Earlier, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff had stated that Moscow denied sharing intelligence with Iran following a separate call with Putin's foreign policy adviser. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump and Witkoff had made clear to the Russians that if intelligence sharing were occurring, 'It’s not something they would be happy with.'
Reports suggest that Russia could gain over $10 billion in additional oil and gas revenues due to Trump's lifting of restrictions on countries buying Russian crude stranded at sea. The decision came after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz drove oil prices above $120 a barrel.
