US President Donald Trump is expected to raise China’s support for Iran when he meets Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington this week, with Tehran’s oil trade and allegations that Chinese entities aided Iranian military operations adding a volatile new issue to an already crowded US-China agenda.
Xi arrives in Washington Wednesday for a three-day visit, his first trip to the United States in nearly three years, with his formal talks with Trump expected Thursday. Trade, technology restrictions, rare earths and Taiwan were already set to dominate the summit, but Iran has emerged as another significant point of friction after months of conflict between Washington and Tehran.
Iran enters summit agenda
Pressure has been building in Washington for Trump to directly challenge Xi over Beijing’s relationship with Tehran. Lawmakers from both parties have urged the administration to confront China over Iranian oil purchases and reports that Chinese entities provided technology and other assistance that could support Iran’s military capabilities.
A group of Democratic lawmakers who are military veterans wrote to the White House Monday asking Trump to raise the issue with Xi. They cited a US intelligence assessment, reported earlier this month, that a Chinese company had allegedly provided satellite imagery used to support an Iranian strike on a US airbase in Jordan in July that killed three American service members.
Separately, Republican House Select Committee on China chairman John Moolenaar has called for consequences over alleged Chinese assistance to Iran and urged Trump not to make concessions to Beijing during the summit.
The claims concerning Chinese entities remain contested. Trump himself played down the satellite-imagery report earlier this month, comparing such intelligence gathering with activities conducted by other countries.
China has opposed US military action and unilateral sanctions against Iran while maintaining that its commercial and diplomatic relations with Tehran are legitimate. Beijing has also publicly called on Iran and the United States to exercise restraint and return to negotiations.
Oil trade under scrutiny
China’s purchases of Iranian crude are expected to form another part of Washington’s concerns. Beijing has long been Iran’s largest oil customer, providing Tehran with an important source of revenue despite US sanctions.
Washington has intensified action against companies and networks it alleges are involved in helping Iran sell oil, procure technology or circumvent sanctions. The US has also sanctioned China- and Hong Kong-linked entities accused of assisting Iranian nuclear research and ballistic missile development.
Chinese purchases of Iranian crude, however, have declined sharply amid the conflict and tighter US pressure. Even so, China remains Iran’s most important major economic partner, making Beijing central to Washington’s attempts to increase financial pressure on Tehran.
The Trump administration faces a difficult calculation. Aggressive sanctions against major Chinese financial institutions dealing with Iran could increase pressure on Tehran but risk opening another confrontation with Beijing at a time when Washington is also trying to stabilise its economic relationship with China.
Trump faces calls for tougher line
The Iran issue comes as Trump has adopted increasingly confrontational rhetoric towards Tehran. At the UN General Assembly Tuesday, he called for Iran’s economic isolation and warned of devastating consequences if Tehran failed to reach an agreement with Washington.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian hit back Wednesday, accusing the US of attempting to “bully” a country it did not understand.
Yet Washington and Tehran have simultaneously reopened indirect diplomatic contacts, underscoring the competing pressures surrounding Trump’s approach to Iran.
China, meanwhile, has sought to position itself as an advocate of negotiations. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi during talks in Beijing last week that both Iran and the US should exercise restraint, revive their negotiating mechanism and pursue substantive consultations.
Beijing has also called for the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened and for the safe movement of international shipping to be restored, reflecting China’s own dependence on stable energy supplies from the Gulf.
Trade and Taiwan loom large
Iran will be only one of several contentious issues awaiting Trump and Xi. The leaders are also expected to discuss extending their trade truce, restrictions on advanced technology, Chinese controls over critical rare-earth exports and possible large-scale purchases of American agricultural products and aircraft.
Taiwan is expected to be particularly sensitive. Xi is likely to press Trump over US arms sales to the island, while Washington faces concerns that Taiwan could become part of a broader negotiation over trade and economic concessions.
The summit will therefore test whether the two leaders can keep their economic relationship on a more stable track while managing widening disagreements stretching from the Taiwan Strait to the Middle East.
For Washington, China’s relationship with Iran has made those two theatres increasingly interconnected. How forcefully Trump chooses to press Xi over Tehran — and how Beijing responds — could determine whether Iran becomes another lasting fault line in US-China relations.