Putin offers to mediate US-Iran talks, Kremlin says
Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call Sunday with his Iranian counterpart, President Masoud Pezeshkian, offering his support after negotiations between the U.S. and Iran failed to reach an agreement to end the conflict, despite 21 hours of trilateral talks in Pakistan.
According to the Kremlin, Putin said he was ready to mediate a settlement to the war.
"Vladimir Putin emphasized his readiness to continue to facilitate the search for a political and diplomatic settlement to the conflict and to mediate efforts to establish a just and lasting peace in the Middle East" the Kremlin said in its readout of the call.
According to Iran's semi-official news agency, Tasnim, Pezeshkian told Putin that U.S. "double standards" and a "totalitarian approach" remain the main obstacles to reaching a fair agreement in talks between Tehran and Washington.
"The Islamic Republic of Iran is fully prepared to reach a balanced and fair agreement that ensures lasting peace and security in the region. If the United States adheres to international legal frameworks, reaching an agreement is not far off," Pezeshkian said, according to Tasnim.
President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have both said that Iran's alleged refusal to abandon its nuclear program is the main sticking point in the peace talks. Trump said in a Sunday post on his social media platform that "most points were agreed to" during the talks Saturday, but further said that the agreements "don't matter" if Iran is allowed to have nuclear power.
-ABC News' Claire Bower and Dragana Jovanovic








