Trump insists no need for Xi’s help on Iran war
US President Donald Trump traveled to China for a risky summit with President Xi Jinping and said he would not need Beijing’s help to end the war with Iran and ease Tehran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz.
Speaking before leaving Washington, Trump often downplayed the role China, which continues to block maritime traffic through a waterway that carries a fifth of the world’s oil supply, could play in resolving the dispute.
“I don’t think we need help with Iran. We will win one way or another, peacefully or otherwise,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
More than a month after a tenuous ceasefire took effect, the United States and Iran have very different demands for ending the war.
While Washington called on Tehran to cancel its nuclear program and lift its pressure on the strait, Iran demanded compensation for war damage, an end to the US blockade and a halt to the war on all fronts, including Lebanon, where Israel is fighting Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Trump called these positions “garbage.”
Iran, meanwhile, has tightened its control over the Strait of Hormuz and cut deals with Iraq and Pakistan to ship oil and liquefied natural gas through the region, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Other countries are exploring similar arrangements, the sources said, in a move that could normalize Tehran’s control over the waterway on a more permanent basis.
The Trump administration said Tuesday that senior U.S. and Chinese officials agreed in April that no country could charge fees for traffic in the region, in an effort to reach consensus on the issue ahead of the summit.
China, which is a major buyer of Iranian oil and maintains close ties with Tehran, did not object to this statement.
As the cost of conflict mounts, Trump has said Americans’ financial woes are not a factor in his decision making about the war.
Data released Tuesday showed U.S. consumer inflation accelerated in April, with the annual rate rising by the most in three years as prices for food, rent and airline tickets rose.
Asked to what extent the economic pressure on Americans had motivated him to reach a deal, Trump said: “Not even a little bit.”
“The only thing that matters when we’re talking about Iran is that they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said before heading to China.
“I don’t think about the financial situation of Americans… I think about one thing: We can’t let Iran have nuclear weapons. That’s it. That’s the only thing that motivates me.”
These words are expected to be scrutinized carefully as cost of living concerns continue to be the most important issue for voters ahead of the midterm elections in November.
The conflict is dealing a heavy blow to global energy markets.
The International Energy Agency said on Wednesday that global oil supplies will fall by about 3.9 million barrels per day through 2026, with more than a billion barrels of supply already lost in the Middle East, and will remain below demand due to disruptions caused by the Iran war.
Brent crude futures fell slightly to US$107 per barrel, following a three-day rally sparked by the Hormuz impasse.
U.S. Central Command said the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln was in the Arabian Sea, imposing a naval blockade, diverting 65 merchant ships and disabling four others.
Polls show the war is unpopular with U.S. voters with less than six months to go until a nationwide election.
Iranian officials remain defiant.
According to the Fars news agency, an official from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said that Iran has expanded the definition of the Strait of Hormuz to an area stretching from the coast of the city of Jask in the east to Siri Island in the west.
In Tehran, the Guard held drills “focused on preparation to confront the enemy,” state television reported.
