Trump delays China trip during US-Israel war on Iran

US President Donald Trump has asked China to postpone his planned visit to Beijing because of the Iran war. "I think it's important that I be here," Trump said in Washington on Monday. The move comes as the US-Israeli war with Iran expands and the United States faces growing military and economic pressure. The conflict could reshape Washington's priorities and strain fragile ties with China.

Trump was expected in Beijing from March 31 to April 2. His visit had been highly anticipated because of the deep strategic and commercial rivalry between the United States and China, a rivalry that has grown sharper under Trump's tariff campaign.

On Tuesday, Trump said the trip would take place "in five or six weeks." He said: "We're working with China. They were fine with it." On Sunday, he suggested that the timing could depend on whether China helps to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed in response to US‑Israeli strikes. 

No agenda yet?

"Both China and the United States will continue to maintain communication regarding President Trump's visit to China," Lin Jian, a spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, told a news conference on Wednesday.

It would be Trump's first trip to China in his second term and was originally intended to stabilize relations after years of tensions over trade, technology and the military balance in the Indo‑Pacific.

John Seaman, from the Center for Asian Studies at the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri), told DW that the delay sends a clear signal. "Postponing the long-awaited trip to Beijing certainly suggests that Trump is getting bogged down in the Middle East, as the U.S. has so often done in the past, and that he is as such losing focus on China."

Seaman said the visit had not yet been fully prepared, despite planning meetings between US and Chinese officials in Paris. "This kind of visit takes months of serious planning and negotiation," he said. "Xi Jinping is not an improvisational leader. It's likely that such a poorly prepared trip would not have yielded much. Delaying it gives the two sides more time to hash things out."

Claus Soong, an analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS), told DW that "Iran might be part of the story, but it's not just Iran. The key factor for the postponement is rather Paris, where both sides met and couldn't reach a consensus about what Trump and Xi will be talking about in Beijing."

The delay has revived concerns in China about Trump's reliability as a negotiating partner. "The postponement, to Beijing's eye, is showing that mutual trust is just getting thinner," Soong said. "Trump's unpredictability is for sure something Beijing is concerned about."

Iran war reshapes priorities

According to the US military, at least 200 troops have been wounded since attacks on Iran began on February 28. Thirteen US service members have been killed. US-based Iran human rights group HRANA said on Monday that inside Iran, more than 3,000 people had been killed so far.

The conflict is spreading across the Middle East. Iran has launched missile attacks on Gulf states that host US bases. The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important energy routes, is now effectively shut down for oil exports due to the fear of mines and attacks. Only "dark transits", ships with their automatic identification systems switched off, likely linked to Iran, are still moving. 

Global shipping and energy prices have jumped. Trump has asked major importers, including China, to send naval support. But analysts say China, which sees Iran as a partner, is most unlikely to join.

"Beijing knows that time is not on the American side. They can sit back and wait," Soong said.  "If the war drags on and the Hormuz Strait stays closed, oil reserves will run out soon. This will put a lot of pressure on Trump, especially since he is facing a midterm election." 

China, the biggest buyer of Iranian oil, could be less vulnerable to the crisis, because it is said to hold the largest oil reserves in the world. It also continues to import oil from Iran, Soong said. This gives Beijing leverage in talks with Washington.

A truce in the trade war

The summit in Beijing was intended to stabilize the trade and tech ceasefire Trump and Xi agreed in Busan in late 2025. "There is a balance, but it is a balance of intimidation," Soong said. "It is a pause, not an end to the competition."

China had responded to Trump's tariffs and to US export controls on computer chips by imposing controls on rare‑earth exports to the United States. It kept some of these restrictions even after Washington rolled back tariffs. 

Trump now wants progress on agricultural purchases ahead of the midterms. More Chinese imports of US poultry, beef and crops could help him with farm‑state voters. "But it would also be good for China if it reached a deal with Trump in order to reduce the economic pressure on its export‑oriented economy", Soong said. Beijing wants lower tariffs and fewer US export controls.

Tensions rise over Taiwan

Security issues are adding pressure. Reuters reported last week that a  $14 billion arms package for Taiwan is ready for Trump to approve. It could be announced after his China trip. The package is expected to include advanced air‑defense systems.

Beijing sees this as a provocation, Soong said. "For the Chinese government, this is a blow to whatever positive atmosphere both sides tried to build. And Beijing cannot expect Trump to say he opposes Taiwanese independence — its core interest."

Beijing says Taiwan is part of China and has warned that it will use force, if necessary, to bring the island under its control.

The Iran war may not yet shift the global rivalry, Soong said, but it exposes a trend. "It is not a turning point yet. But it shows that during Trump's second term, we might see a shift in the US‑China competition as the US becomes less popular and less capable of mobilizing allies."