"Donald Trump is due to arrive in Beijing on Wednesday evening, the first visit to China by a US president in nearly a decade, as he seeks to mend power and prestige weakened by the war in Iran. Trump will bring tech leaders, including Elon Musk of Tesla and Tim Cook of Apple, and plans for headline-grabbing deals. He has said he expects China's leader, Xi Jinping, would give me a big, fat hug when I get there."
"But the Middle East conflict that Trump started, and seems unable to finish, will cast a long shadow over two days of talks amid fears that he might be tempted to weaken US support for Taiwan, the self-governing democracy claimed by China, in return for Xi's assistance. I don't think we need any help with Iran, Trump said to reporters before departing the White House on Tuesday. We'll win it one way or the other peacefully or otherwise."
"Behind the scenes, US officials have spent weeks urging China Iran's biggest oil customer and one of the few powers with leverage in Tehran to pressure the Islamic Republic into reopening the strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply ordinarily passes, while accepting US terms for peace. The US recently sanctioned several Chinese firms accused of assisting Iranian oil shipments and supplying satellite imagery allegedly used in Iranian military operations."
"China condemned the measures as illegal unilateral sanctions and invoked a rarely used blocking statute prohibiting Chinese entities from complying wi"
Donald Trump is scheduled to arrive in Beijing on Wednesday evening for the first US presidential visit to China in nearly a decade. He plans to bring prominent technology leaders, including Elon Musk and Tim Cook, and to pursue headline-grabbing agreements. The meeting with Xi Jinping is clouded by the ongoing Middle East conflict and fears that US support for Taiwan could be weakened in exchange for Chinese help. Trump has said the US does not need China’s assistance with Iran and expects progress through US pressure. The war has continued for three months, with Tehran tightening control over the Strait of Hormuz and Washington struggling to secure a lasting settlement. US officials have urged China to pressure Iran to reopen the strait under US peace terms, while the US has sanctioned Chinese firms tied to Iranian oil shipments and military-related satellite imagery. China has condemned the sanctions as illegal unilateral actions and has invoked a blocking statute to prevent compliance by Chinese entities.
#us-china-relations #trump-xi-meeting #iran-and-strait-of-hormuz #taiwan #sanctions-and-oil-shipments
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]