Trump and Xi Hold Beijing Summit on Iran, Taiwan, and Other Issues

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a summit with their delegations in Beijing on May 14, 2026, discussing the Iran war, the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the Beijing-claimed island of Taiwan and the case of pro-democracy publisher Jimmy Lai.

The Trump-Xi talks lasted more than two hours. Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave an interview to NBC News in Beijing immediately afterward.

Rubio said the United States was not asking for Beijing’s help with Iran. -Israeli war with Iran. Rubio added that Trump “didn’t ask him for anything” and “We’re not asking for China’s help. ” China said it is not in favor of militarizing the Strait of Hormuz.

The effective shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran has disrupted global energy supplies and sent gas prices soaring. Trump credited China with bringing Iran to the negotiating table for a ceasefire last month.

Rubio said Trump and Xi had found common ground on Iran, with China reiterating its opposition to Tehran developing nuclear weapons. U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and called for a diplomatic solution.

-Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28, 2026. The Iran war has caused Trump’s China trip to be postponed by six weeks. A Chinese readout of the Trump-Xi talks made no direct mention of Iran. The Chinese readout said the two leaders exchanged views on major international and regional issues including the Middle East situation, according to Xinhua.

Rubio has been under Chinese sanctions since 2020. Marco Rubio traveled to Beijing while under Chinese sanctions. China indicated that the sanctions on Marco Rubio would not prevent him from traveling to Beijing because they concerned his actions as a senator, not as secretary of state.

The two leaders also discussed Taiwan. Xi warned Trump that tensions over Taiwan could jeopardize the relationship, leading to clashes and even conflicts if not handled carefully, according to Beijing’s readout. U.S.

Policies on Taiwan have not changed and remain consistent across multiple presidential administrations. In December, the Trump administration announced an $11 billion arms package for Taiwan. U.S.

Arms sales to Taiwan “did not feature prominently” in the Trump-Xi talks. “From our perspective, any forced change in the status quo and the situation that’s there now would be bad for both countries,” Rubio said. Trump asked Xi about Jimmy Lai during the summit.

Trump and Xi discussed the case of Jimmy Lai, a pro-democracy publisher in Hong Kong. Jimmy Lai is 78 years old and was sentenced to 20 years in prison this year after conviction in a national security trial. “The president always raises that case and a couple others, and obviously we’ll hope to get a positive response from that,” Rubio said.

U.S. if released by Chinese authorities. “We’d be open to any arrangement that would work for them, as long as he’s given his freedom,” Rubio said.

@NBCNews reported that Rubio defended comments Trump made earlier this week that he was “not even a little bit” concerned with the financial pressures Americans are facing as he negotiates with Iran. “What the president’s making clear is, if the Iranians think that they are going to use our domestic politics to pressure him into a bad deal, that’s not going to happen,” he said.

Rubio also noted that other countries around the world “are paying a much higher price” for oil.