U.S. President Donald Trump has told Vladimir Putin to prioritize mediating an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine before offering to mediate the Israel-Iran conflict. This comes as Moscow, a close ally of Iran, has repeatedly offered to de-escalate the Middle East tensions. Trump, who previously seemed open to Putin’s involvement, shifted his stance on Wednesday, urging, “Vladimir, let’s mediate Russia first, you can worry about this later.” The Kremlin’s strong ties with both Iran (which supplied Russia with military drones for Ukraine in exchange for nuclear program assistance) and Israel (whose Prime Minister Netanyahu frequently visited Moscow pre-2022) could position Putin as a regional power broker. However, European leaders, like French President Emmanuel Macron, view Putin’s mediation offers as hypocritical given Russia’s ongoing conflict in Ukraine and disregard for the U.N. Charter. Meanwhile, Trump is reportedly considering joining Israel’s assault on Iran, following a recent missile strike on an Israeli hospital.
