Russia insists only Iran has right to decide on its uranium

JAKARTA - Russia insists only Iran has the right to decide on its enriched uranium, stressing its offer to Tehran to ease the United States' concerns.

"Russia has offered to export Iran's enriched uranium reserves to its territory. This initiative is still on the table (it still exists)," said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, launching Al Arabiya from Reuters (5/2).

"Only Iran has the right to determine its fate, including deciding whether to export it outside Iran and, if the decision is positive, where to export it or not," he said.

As previously reported, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was ready to help defuse the situation regarding Iran.

"Russia continues to make efforts, continues to maintain contacts with all interested parties and, as far as possible, remains ready to contribute to easing tensions in Iran," Peskov said, quoted by Sputnik.

Peskov said Russia was also offering Iran excess enriched uranium export services as a possible option, adding that it could remove obstacles for a number of countries, including tensions with the United States.

"This topic has been on the agenda for a long time," Peskov said.

"Russia has long offered its services as one of the options that can eliminate a number of factors that cause tension for some countries," he said.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington have escalated since the outbreak of anti-government protests in Iran in late December. The situation was exacerbated by reports that the US military fleet was moving towards the region, as announced by President Donald Trump.

Trump confirmed that a "large fleet" of US military forces was heading to the region, while warning Iran to be willing to negotiate its nuclear program or face potential military action.

In recent days, diplomatic activity has increased, with a number of regional countries, including Turkey, intervening to ease tensions between the two countries.

Most recently, Iran and the US are scheduled to hold a meeting in Oman on Friday this week.