During an official visit to China on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov affirmed Iran’s “inalienable” right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes, as reported by the Times of Israel.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran possesses an inalienable right to enrich uranium for civilian applications,” Lavrov declared at a press conference on Tuesday. This statement came after a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to the Times of Israel.

The issue of uranium access remains a contentious point in the ongoing peace talks between the United States and Iran, particularly for U.S. President Donald Trump.

On April 8, Trump took to Truth Social, asserting, “There will be no enrichment of Uranium,” and emphasized that the U.S. would collaborate with Iran to excavate all remaining nuclear materials to prevent the Islamic Republic from accessing uranium.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov addresses the media at a press conference in Beijing, China, on April 15, 2026. (Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who led the American delegation during negotiations with Iranian representatives in Islamabad, Pakistan, last Saturday, reinforced this firm stance on uranium enrichment.

“The enriched uranium that the Iranians currently possess, we have said that we want that to come our of their country, and we would like to take possession of it,” Vance told Fox News’ Brett Baier on Monday.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese President Xi Jinping participate in a meeting in Beijing, China, on April 15, 2026. (Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

“The president doesn’t want to leave the next president or the president after that to be worrying about this program so we would like to get that material out of the country completely so that the United States has control over it.”

Despite the U.S. hard line, Russia’s top diplomat appeared to openly defy the U.S.’ demands, speaking in strong terms against what he viewed as American global control.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a bilateral meeting in Beijing, China, on April 15, 2026. (Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

“Neither China nor Russia, nor the majority of countries throughout the world, can accept this approach,” Lavrov said in remarks posted to a Russian state website.

The peace talks in Iran stalled, according to Vance, because of their refusal to completely give up their nuclear program. Nuclear experts praised the decision.

“The U.S. team was wise to walk away once it became clear the Iranians would not agree to Washington’s core nuclear demands. Tehran maintaining enriched uranium stocks and uranium enrichment capabilities provides it with a pathway to nuclear weapons, plain and simple,” Andrea Stricker, deputy director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ nonproliferation program, told Fox News Digital.

Fox News Digital contacted the U.S. State Department and the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment but did not hear back immediately.

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