Trump Claims He Is Not Helping Ukraine, Nor Is Russia & China Helping Iran As Regional Conflicts Move Toward World War

President Donald Trump claimed that he does not sell weapons to Ukraine, although he does sell them to NATO countries which give them to Ukraine. He implied that there is a major distinction with that arrangement. The President also claimed that Russia and China are not selling weapons to Iran, despite evidence and admissions to the contrary.

On Friday Trump said:

President Xi, at our recent meeting in Beijing, China, told me that he would not, under any circumstances, give or sell Weapons to the Islamic Republic of Iran — And that statement included Chinese Companies. Considering our relationship, I take him at his word and, besides, l am doing him very big favors, also. Likewise, President Putin, despite the horrible War going on in Ukraine (The relationship remains, as it does with President Zelenskyy), told me that he would not sell Weapons to Iran. He understands that I do not sell Weapons to Ukraine, but to NATO Countries. They pay full price, and how those Weapons are distributed, I have no idea. Therefore, two major Countries that people speak of often in terms of Iran are, in my opinion, not participating. If they did, it would be very bad for them — Certainly not in their best interests. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP

In April 2025 Moscow formalized a defense and economic cooperation agreement with Tehran, codifying the alliance between the two nations. 

Following the start of the Iran war, Russia began providing targeting intelligence to the Islamic Republic.

The intelligence sharing included the location of American military vessels and aircraft in the Middle East, which Iran utilizes for their missile attacks.

Soon thereafter, the head of Russia’s Direct Investment Fund, Kirill Dmitriev, offered Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff a deal – ceasing the intelligence sharing with Iran in exchange for the U.S. ceasing intelligence sharing with Ukraine. The U.S. officials reportedly rejected the deal.

According to a March 24 report in The Wall Street Journal, Russia has been directly supplying Ukraine with weapons and other goods.

“An Israeli strike on a naval outpost in the Caspian Sea targeted Russia’s support for Iran in the war, hitting a supply line that the countries have used to move ammunition, drones and other weaponry, people familiar with the matter said,” The Wall Street Journal said. “Last week’s strike was Israel’s first ever on the world’s largest inland sea. Far beyond the reach of the U.S. Navy, the sea connects Russian and Iranian ports about 600 miles apart, giving the countries a place to freely swap weapons along with goods such as wheat and oil.”

The weapons transfers between Moscow and Tehran became more important after the start of the Iran war.

“The route has become especially important for transferring Iran’s Shahed drones—now made in both countries—which Russia has used to bombard Ukrainian cities and Tehran has used to strike airports, energy facilities and U.S. bases across the Persian Gulf,” The Wall Street Journal said.

The relationships of the U.S. and Russia in the proxy wars of Iran and Ukraine are becoming a central issue as the regional conflicts hurtle toward World War Three.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently said that the United States is directly involved in the recent Ukrainian strikes against targets within Russia.

“The Americans, through arms supplies paid for by the European Union, the provision of intelligence, the Starlink system and much more, are not simply helping, but are directly participating in guiding Ukrainian weapons toward targets, including civilian targets, on Russian territory,” Lavrov said Wednesday.

While this relationship has been ongoing since the war began, Moscow’s public acknowledgment of it on Wednesday indicates the Kremlin may be signaling that it now views the U.S. as an enemy combatant in the war.

Moscow updated its nuclear doctrine in November 2024, when the Biden administration was allowing Ukraine to attack deep into Russia with long-range U.S. missiles. Those missiles were nuclear-capable, but had conventional warheads on them.

The revised doctrine allows Russia to launch a first-strike nuclear attack against nations which are party to conventional attacks against it. 

With Moscow now acknowledging Washington as an active participant in the attacks against it, the Kremlin is effectively saying that the U.S. may be a valid target in a preemptive nuclear attack.

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