US President Donald Trump delays his trip to Beijing due to Iran war while also seeking China’s help to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Published On 18 Mar 2026
US President Donald Trump has confirmed he is delaying plans to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of the month, as the US-Israeli war on Iran continues to consume most of Washington’s focus.
“We are resetting the meeting,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday. “We’re working with China. They were fine with it.”
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Trump’s comments that he wants to remain in Washington come as the war against Iran extends into its third week and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed to almost all global shipping.
“Because of the war, I want to be here. I have to be here,” Trump said.
Trump was scheduled to visit Beijing from March 31 to April 2. The president said he now plans to visit in “about five weeks” or towards the end of April. His last state visit to China was in 2017, during his first term.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday that the US and China “remain in communication” about Trump’s plans to visit.
Trump and Xi were expected to discuss a range of issues, from trade tariffs and Chinese export controls on rare earth minerals and magnets, to the US relationship with Taiwan and Chinese fentanyl exports.
The US-China trade war was put on pause in October when Xi and Trump signed a truce following a meeting in South Korea, and both sides have been working on a more comprehensive trade agreement to resolve their dispute.
While China and Xi were in Trump’s crosshairs at the start of his second term last year, the president’s tone towards both has softened since his meeting with the Chinese leader in South Korea.
“I look forward to seeing President Xi; he looks forward to seeing me, I think,” Trump said from the White House. “We have a very good relationship with China. It’s much different than it was in the past.”
Trump has also signalled that he is seeking China’s help to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which has been largely blocked by Tehran since the US and Israel launched their war on Iran 19 days ago.
The waterway is a critical conduit for global trade and Middle East oil exports, and the price of oil has fluctuated significantly due to its closure and constricting fuel supplies.
Trump told The Financial Times that China was among the group of countries that should lobby Tehran to reopen the strait.
Trump previously accused Tehran and Beijing of belonging to the “Axis of Autocracy” due to their close economic ties, as China is Iran’s largest trading partner. China has also supplied Tehran with critical technology to support electronic warfare, some of which has been on display in recent weeks.
If the strait remains closed and the war continues, Trump could still see himself on the back foot when his meeting with Xi next takes place, said Ali Wyne, senior researcher of US-China relations at the International Crisis Group.
Proponents of the Trump administration’s foreign policy had hoped that Operation Epic Fury, as the US campaign on Iran has been named, “would enhance President Trump’s negotiating posture vis-a-vis President Xi by underscoring his willingness to take dramatic, unexpected actions”, Wyne said.
“The gambit, however, has quickly boomeranged. Facing the severest oil supply shock in history, Trump is now exhorting Xi to help him reopen the world’s most vital waterway, the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.
