United States President Donald Trump has cautioned Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping against providing military support to Iran, warning that such a move would have serious consequences for both countries.
Trump said it would be “certainly not in their best interests” for Russia or China to supply weapons to Tehran amid the ongoing conflict involving the United States and Israel.
Despite the warning, the U.S. president said both Putin and Xi had assured him that their governments were neither arming Iran nor participating in the conflict.
Earlier this year, Western intelligence reports alleged that Russia had supplied Iran with drones, food and medical supplies, while China was reportedly considering the delivery of air defence systems to Tehran.
In a post on social media, Trump disclosed that Xi had assured him during their recent meeting in Beijing that China would not provide weapons to Iran.
According to Trump, the Chinese leader told him that under no circumstances would Beijing sell or transfer arms to the Islamic Republic.
He also said Putin gave him a similar assurance despite Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
Trump stated that the Russian president had informed him that Moscow would not sell weapons to Iran.
While expressing confidence that neither Russia nor China was currently providing military assistance to Tehran, Trump warned that any change in their position would carry serious consequences.
He maintained that although the two countries are often mentioned in discussions about Iran, he did not believe they were involved in supporting Tehran militarily, adding that doing so would not serve their interests.
Trump’s remarks came as reports indicated that Iran executed more than 100 people in the past month, including three women, prompting renewed concern from human rights organisations over what they described as worsening repression in the country.
According to the reports, Iranian authorities resumed executions several weeks after the outbreak of hostilities with the United States and Israel in March, as part of efforts to suppress anti-government demonstrations.
More than 50 people have reportedly been killed over their participation in the protests, which have been described as the largest wave of unrest since Iran’s Islamic leadership came to power in 1979.
Analysts have warned that the number of executions could rise further following the breakdown of efforts to secure a ceasefire.
