Iran says its nuclear program is for civilian energy purposes, and so peaceful. But it had enriched uranium to a near weapons-grade level, and well beyond what is needed for energy, putting it close to developing a bomb if it opted to do so.

Trump's administration spent months trying to convince Tehran to enter into a nuclear deal before it joined a bombing campaign spearheaded by Israel.

While discussing the situation around Iran, Putin emphasized the need to resolve all issues by political and diplomatic means, said Yuri Ushakov, his foreign affairs advisor.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin said they will speak by phone Thursday, their sixth publicly disclosed chat since Trump returned to the White House