Russia Denies Sharing Intel on US Troops with Iran

Trump and Witkoff say Russia claims it has not been providing intelligence to Iran on American military assets in the Middle East.

Mar. 13, 2026 at 12:00am

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Russian officials have denied in a phone call with President Donald Trump that they are sharing intelligence on U.S. military assets with Iran, according to U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff. The White House has warned Russia that sharing such information would not be acceptable, but Trump has downplayed the issue, saying any intelligence sharing has not been helpful to Iran.

Why it matters

The potential sharing of U.S. troop locations and other sensitive military information with Iran by Russia would be a major escalation of tensions between the U.S. and its adversaries, potentially putting American service members at risk. It would also further strain relations between Washington and Moscow.

The details

Witkoff said that during a call with Trump, Russian officials claimed they have not been sharing intelligence with Iran. The White House press secretary said Trump and Witkoff sent a message to Russia that they would not be happy if such intelligence sharing was taking place. However, Trump himself has played down the issue, saying that if Russia is providing information to Iran, "it's not helping them much."

  • On March 12, 2026, President Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin for about an hour.
  • On March 13, 2026, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff discussed the call between Trump and Putin in an interview with CNBC.

The players

Donald Trump

The President of the United States.

Vladimir Putin

The President of Russia.

Steve Witkoff

A U.S. special envoy.

Karoline Leavitt

The White House press secretary.

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What they’re saying

“We can take them at their word. That's a better question for the intel people, but let's hope that they're not sharing.”

— Steve Witkoff, U.S. special envoy (CNBC)

“If that was taking place. It's not something they would be happy with, and they hope that it is not taking place.”

— Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary (White House press conference)

“... he wants to be helpful.”

— Donald Trump (News conference)

What’s next

The White House has warned Russia that sharing intelligence on U.S. troops with Iran would not be acceptable, and the administration will likely continue to monitor the situation and respond accordingly.

The takeaway

The potential sharing of sensitive U.S. military information with Iran by Russia would be a major escalation of tensions, but the White House has pushed back against the reports and is hoping Russia is not actually providing such intelligence to its ally.