President Trump is hitting pause on his highly anticipated summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of March and is telling Beijing that it can wait a month as his team focuses on the conflict in Iran and their attempts to disrupt shipping in the crucial waterway of the Strait of Hormuz.
China has been keeping its cards close to the vest as it has warily watched U.S. forces take out most of the senior Iranian leadership in the last 17 days with Operation Epic Fury. Trump, meanwhile, has worked since the beginning of his administration to rebalance the rules of trade between the two powerful countries, as he believes the deck has long been stacked in the People’s Republic’s favor:
The summit was meant to focus on trade, as both Trump and Xi seek to extend a delicate tariff truce between the world’s two biggest economies. But China showed little immediate sign that it was bothered by the likely delay, which analysts told NBC News may actually prove beneficial to efforts to further stabilize relations.
Trump said Monday that his China trip planned for later this month could be postponed because of the war, telling reporters in Washington, “I think it’s important that I be here.” But his administration has not confirmed that the trip is delayed or shared more specific dates for when it would be rescheduled.
🚨BREAKING — POTUS will delay his planned trip to China for approximately one month, due to the war with Iran. pic.twitter.com/ssK3Pdvvzk
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) March 17, 2026