Russia is pushing back against President Donald Trump’s threats to bomb Iran, calling them «illegal and unacceptable.» 

Trump in recent days has increased his threats against Iran and warned that there could be direct conflict if the Islamic Republic doesn’t stop arming the Houthi terrorist group or halt its nuclear program. Russia, meanwhile, said Thursday that it’s committed to finding solutions to Iran’s nuclear program that respects its rights to peaceful nuclear energy, according to Reuters. 

«The use of military force by Iran’s opponents in the context of the settlement is illegal and unacceptable,» Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova was quoted by the news agency as saying. 

«Threats from outside to bomb Iran’s nuclear infrastructure facilities will inevitably lead to an irreversible global catastrophe. These threats are simply unacceptable,» she reportedly added. 

TRUMP THREATENS TO BOMB IRAN UNLESS THEY END NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROGRAM AND BEGIN TALKS ON NEW DEAL 

Rebekah Koffler, a former DIA intelligence officer specializing in Russia’s war-fighting strategy and Putin’s thinking, told Fox News Digital Thursday that «Russia’s statement is consistent with the diplomatic posture that it’s trying to project of being Iran’s strategic partner.

«In reality, Russia and Iran are not natural allies. They share a very turbulent history and there’s plenty of distrust in the relationship. The Russians don’t trust Iranians to have a fully operational militarized nuclear capability,» she continued. «But they would never admit it in public. At one point, during the Obama administration, Moscow was siding with Washington in terms of economic sanctions on Iran and complied with Washington’s request not to sell S-300s air defense missiles to Tehran. 

«Putin is angling to serve as a broker between the Trump administration and the Iranian government on the nuclear issue,» she also said. 

Trump’s overtures via a letter to Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, to jump-start talks on dismantling Tehran’s illicit nuclear weapons program, were met with rejection on Sunday. 

TRUMP THREATENS IRAN OVER NUKES AS DNI GABBARD CLAIMS TEHRAN IS NOT BUILDING BOMBS 

Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei waves to the crowd during a meeting with officials in Tehran on March 31, 2025. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP)

Trump told NBC the day before, «If they don’t make a deal, there will be bombing.» 

«But there’s a chance that if they don’t make a deal, that I will do secondary tariffs on them like I did four years ago,» he added. 

Secondary «tariffs,» or sanctions, would mean slapping financial penalties on any country that does business with Iran. 

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday, «We don’t avoid talks; it’s the breach of promises that has caused issues for us so far,» according to the Associated Press. He added, «They must prove that they can build trust.»  

Gathering to discuss the Iranian nuclear issue are, from left, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov, Chinese Foreign Minister Wag Yi and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazeem Gharibabadi on March 14, 2025, in Beijing. (Getty Images)

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Iran is enriching uranium to 60%, just shy of the 90% weapons-grade. Experts say it could have a nuclear weapon within weeks if it were to take the final steps to building one. Fox News Digital reported in late March that Iran’s regime has enriched enough uranium to manufacture six nuclear weapons, according to a U.N. atomic agency report. 

Fox News’ Benjamin Weinthal, Caitlin McFall and Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.

World leaders reacted to the sweeping tariffs President Donald Trump released this week impacting essentially every U.S. trading partner. 

The White House has implemented a flat 10% tariff on apparently all imports, though some nations saw drastically higher taxes slapped on their U.S. exports – including Vietnam, which was issued a 46% tariff one day after it slashed its tariffs on U.S. imports.

However, no nation was handed a higher import tax than China, which Trump revealed will have an additional 34% blanket tariff on its exports to the U.S. on top of the 20% tariff the president implemented earlier this year. This brings the total tariffs on Chinese goods imported into the U.S. to 54% – just shy of the 60% Trump pledged on the campaign trail.

President Donald Trump holds a chart as he delivers remarks on reciprocal tariffs during an event in the Rose Garden entitled «Make America Wealthy Again» at the White House in Washington, D.C., on April 2, 2025. (Getty Images)

CANADA’S PM CARNEY VOWS TO ‘FIGHT’ TRUMP’S TARIFFS, OTHER WORLD LEADERS WEIGH IMPACT

CHINA – 54% tariffs

«China firmly opposes this and will take countermeasures to safeguard its own rights and interests,» China’s Commerce Ministry reportedly said in a statement. «There are no winners in trade wars, and there is no way out for protectionism.»

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun also warned that «Protectionism has no exit ramp» and urged Washington to «correct its wrong practices and resolve economic and trade differences with other countries — including China — through fair, respectful and reciprocal consultations.» 

EUROPEAN UNION – 20% tariffs

The EU, which was hit with a blanket 20% tariff on top of the 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum as well as car exports to the U.S., which are expected to severely impact European nations, pledged to strike back at Trump’s tariff war.

«I know that many of you feel let down by our oldest ally,» European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a video posted to X. «Uncertainty will spiral and trigger the rise of further protectionism. The consequences will be dire for millions of people around the globe.»

The EU chief said the bloc was already finalizing countermeasures to Trump’s tariffs on steel and pledged to take similar actions to protect the pharmaceutical and auto industries «if negotiations fail.»

«We must brace for the impact this will inevitably have. Europe has everything it needs to make it through this storm,» von der Leyen added, noting the EU is the single largest market on the planet, which she said serves as Europe’s «safe harbor in tumultuous times.»

«If you take on one of us, you take on all of us,» she added. «Our unity is our strength.»

SOME COUNTRIES TARGETED BY TRUMP TARIFFS SEEK NEGOTIATIONS, CHINA SAYS ‘NO WINNERS IN TRADE WARS’

President Donald Trump shakes hands with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, center left, alongside Vice President JD Vance, right, and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, 2nd left, at the White House on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Carl Court/Pool via AP)

UNITED KINGDOM -10%

Leaders in the U.K. have repeatedly said they would not immediately respond to the blanket tariff – which coupled with the steel and auto tariffs, could have a significant impact on its economy – though London is taking steps to see which tariffs could be implemented that would have the least negative effect on its own businesses. 

British Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds reportedly told members of Parliament on Thursday that the U.K. will «not hesitate to act» if an agreement with Washington to circumvent the tariff war cannot be met, reported Politico.

«We will seek the views of U.K. stakeholders over four weeks until 1st May 2025 on products that could potentially be included in any U.K. tariff response,» Reynolds said in a statement. «This exercise will also give businesses the chance to have their say, and influence the design of any possible U.K. response.»

CANADA – 25% tariffs

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Trump’s tariffs will «fundamentally change the international trading system» and pledged to «fight» back through «countermeasures.»

«We’re in a situation where there’s going to be an impact on the U.S. economy, which will build with time,» he added. «In our judgment, it will be negative on the U.S. economy that will have an impact on us.»

«In a crisis, it’s important to come together,» Carney said. «It’s essential to act with purpose and with force, and that’s what we will do.»

A cargo ship sits at PortMiami on June 9, 2022 in Miami Beach, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

TRUMP TOUTS RETURN OF THE ‘AMERICAN DREAM’ IN HISTORIC TARIFF ANNOUNCEMENT

MEXICO – 25% tariffs

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she will «announce a comprehensive program» to address Trump’s tariffs but will not engage in a «tit-for-tat on tariffs.»

Sheinbaum said she plans to «strengthen the economy under any circumstance.» 

JAPAN – 24%

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said, «We’re putting all options on the table in considering the most effective response.»

«Japan is a country that is making the largest amount of investment to the United States,» he reportedly told his Parliament. «We wonder if it makes sense for (Washington) to apply uniform tariffs to all countries. That is a point we’ve been making and will continue to do so. 

«We need to consider what’s best for Japan’s national interest,» he added, without detailing what specific steps Tokyo could take.

AUSTRALIA – 10%

Though Australia was among the nations hit with some of the lowest tariffs issued by the White House on Wednesday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called them «totally unwarranted.»

«President Trump referred to reciprocal tariffs. A reciprocal tariff would be zero, not 10%,» he said at a press event. «The administration’s tariffs have no basis in logic, and they go against the basis of our two nation’s partnership.»

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«This is not the act of a friend,» Albanese said.

Albanese pointed out that Americans will pay the heaviest price for the tariffs and said therefore he will not put reciprocal tariffs back on the U.S. 

«We will not join the race to the bottom,» he added, but pledged to continue to fight to have the tariffs removed. 

More than 3,000 people have now died from the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Burma last week, which destroyed thousands of buildings and sent the war-torn country into a deeper humanitarian crisis. 

Burma’s military-led government announced that the death toll from Friday’s earthquake rose to 3,085, while 4,715 people were injured and another 341 are missing. 

«With infrastructure compromised and patient numbers surging, access to health care has become nearly impossible in many of the worst-hit areas,» according to the U.N. «Thousands of people are in urgent need of trauma care, surgical interventions and treatment for disease outbreaks.» 

The World Health Organization assessed so far that four hospitals and one health center had been completely destroyed, while another 32 hospitals and 18 health centers had been partially damaged. 

VIDEO: CHAOS IN BANGKOK AS APARTMENT BUILDING COLLAPSES, SENDING PEOPLE RUNNING 

The agency is now preparing $1 million of relief supplies, including body bags, and is warning of a rising risk of diseases such as cholera spreading in affected areas, according to Reuters. 

«Cholera remains a particular concern for all of us,» Elena Vuolo, the deputy head of WHO’s Burma office, told the news agency. 

«I’ve heard that in the next day or two there are rains [expected],» added Titon Mitra, the Burma representative of the United Nations Development Program. 

«If that hits, we’ve got people, lots of people now, in temporary shelters, makeshift camps out on the streets, and that’s going to be a real problem,» he reportedly added. 

With many left homeless by the earthquake, and many others staying away from their homes over fears ongoing aftershocks will bring them down, workers in Burma’s capital of Naypyitaw labored in the 104-degree heat to set up big tents in open fields to provide some shelter. 

VIDEO: WATER CASCADES DOWN SIDE OF BUILDING IN BANGKOK FOLLOWING EARTHQUAKE 

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescuers conduct searches for survivors at the collapsed Sky Villa residence in Mandalay, Burma, on Tuesday, April 1. (Cai Yang/Xinhua via AP)

More than 1,550 international rescuers were operating alongside locals on Thursday, according to a statement from the military. Rescue supplies and equipment have been sent by 17 countries. 

Myanmar’s military seized power in 2021 from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking what has turned into a civil war. 

The quake worsened an already dire humanitarian crisis, with more than 3 million people displaced from their homes and nearly 20 million in need even before it hit, according to the U.N. 

In Bangkok, Thailand, where the quake brought down a skyscraper under construction, the search for survivors and bodies continued as Gov. Chadchart Sittipunt said a possible sound of life was detected in the rubble. By mid-afternoon there on Thursday, more than 144 hours after the earthquake, nobody had been found. 

Patients lie on beds inside the compound of Sagaing Hospital in Sagaing, Burma. (Reuters/Stringer/TPX Images of the Day)

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Twenty-two people were killed and 35 injured in the city, mostly by the collapse of the unfinished building. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.