TEHRAN – Moscow announced on Sunday that a proposal by the Russian president to hold an online conference between leaders of the countries which are permanent members of the UN Security Council as well as Germany and Iran remains on the table even as the U.S. president has refused to join, Sputnik reported.

On Friday, Russian leader Vladimir Putin proposed the summit to discuss security in the Persian Gulf and the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

“Of course, yes,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov affirmed when asked whether the initiative is still on the table after Trump’s statement.

Trump said on Saturday that he would not likely support the initiative, saying he would wait until the November election.

Putin urged Washington to assess the advantages of the implementation of the initiative in order to avoid further escalation of the situation in the Persian Gulf.

PA/PA