Trump told Putin U.S. is ready to resume nuclear talks with Iran, Kremlin says
President Trump returns to the White House on June 9 following a Camp David meeting with senior administration members. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Trump told Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call on Saturday that White House envoy Steve Witkoff is ready to resume nuclear talks with Iran's foreign minister, the Russian president's foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said.
Why it matters: Putin, in previous phone calls, proposed that Trump help in the nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran.
- The current crisis between Israel and Iran will be a test case for Trump's strategy of mending relations between the U.S. and Russia in order to solve crisis around the world together.
A senior White House official told Axios: "Whatever happens today cannot be prevented. But we have the ability to negotiate a successful peaceful resolution to this conflict if Iran is willing. The fastest way for Iran to accomplish peace is to give up its nuclear weapons program."
Driving the news: The nuclear talks planned for Sunday in Muscat have been cancelled due to the Israeli attack against Iran, the foreign minister of Oman Badr al-Busaidi said.
- "While there will be no meeting Sunday, we remain committed to talks and hope the Iranians will come to the table soon," a U.S. official said.
Trump told Axios on Friday that he thinks the Israeli strikes on Iran might help in pushing Iran toward a nuclear deal.
- Trump and Putin both spoke on Friday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Putin spoke to Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian.
- Putin told both Netanyahu and Pezeshkian that he is ready to mediate between the parties to prevent further escalation of tensions, the Kremlin said.
Behind the scenes: Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi told the EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas on Saturday that Iran will not continue its negotiations with the U.S. as long as the Israeli attack on Iran continues.
- He claimed the U.S. directly supports the Israeli strikes, the Iranian foreign ministry said.
- But two sources with direct knowledge said Araghchi told several foreign ministers in the last 36 hours that Iran will be willing to resume negotiations with the U.S. once its retaliation for the Israeli attack is over.
What they're saying: Ushakov said in a briefing with reporters that Putin and Trump spoke for 50 minutes and discussed the war between Israel and Iran.
- Putin told Trump he condemns the Israeli military operation against Iran, Ushakov said.
- The White House hasn't replied to a request for comment.
The bottom line: Putin told Trump Russia is ready to continue direct negotiations with Ukraine after June 22, Ushakov said.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional statements.