Key Points:
- President Trump wants to delay his upcoming meeting with Xi Jinping until late April.
- Trump cited the ongoing war and the blocked Strait of Hormuz as reasons for the delay.
- The U.S. government wants China and other nations to help patrol the dangerous waterway.
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent claims the delay is simply due to logistics, not political friction.
The highly anticipated meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping might not happen this month. Over the past few days, Trump and his top aides have strongly suggested that the planned trip to Beijing will likely be delayed.
President Trump spoke to reporters on Monday afternoon at the White House and confirmed that he had asked China to push back the summit. “Because of the war, I want to be here,” Trump stated, explaining he requested to delay the trip by a month or so. The original schedule had the President visiting Beijing from March 31 to April 2.
These new comments arrived right after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent finished 2 days of intense meetings with Chinese officials in Paris. Bessent traveled to France on Sunday and Monday to iron out the final details of the ongoing trade truce before the President’s scheduled arrival.
Appearing on CNBC on Monday, Bessent tried to calm the markets. He cited simple “logistics” as the primary reason for any potential delay. He specifically tried to underline that disagreements over the war with Iran are not the reason behind the possible schedule change. Bessent stated clearly that if the meetings get pushed back, it has nothing to do with the President demanding that China police the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait of Hormuz remains a massive global crisis. The critical shipping channel is effectively closed by the fighting, completely choking off the flow of oil to global markets. Over the weekend, President Trump aggressively pushed other nations to step up and help reopen the vital waterway.
Bessent’s comments on CNBC seemed to walk back the President’s own words. Just a day earlier, Trump told the Financial Times that the trip could be delayed specifically because the two sides had no deal on Chinese ships helping to patrol the strait. The President told the news outlet that the United States would like to know whether China plans to help before he travels to Beijing.
Financial experts are watching the situation nervously. Terry Haines of Pangaea Policy called the potential delay a negative event for the markets. He added that the developing uncertainty alone will likely increase market jitters until the White House resolves the schedule. Economic observers have long circled this visit to China on their calendars. They view the summit as the ultimate test of whether the current trade detente between the two superpowers will actually last.
Tensions between the United States and China have cooled significantly in recent months. Last year, both sides briefly imposed triple-digit duties and tariffs on each other, damaging the global economy.
During his television appearance, Bessent repeatedly sought to downplay the importance of any forthcoming delay. He directly told viewers that financial markets should “absolutely not” react negatively if the White House officially announces a new date. Bessent also shared that the weekend meetings in Paris made excellent progress on broader bilateral concerns. He promised a joint statement soon and insisted that the relationship between the world’s 2 largest economies remains stable. Chinese state media echoed this positive message, confirming that an agreement is securely in place to maintain current tariff levels.
The most pressing issue for Trump this week is not trade, but oil. He is trying desperately to gather an international military coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran recently scared international shipping companies away from the crucial waterway with a series of attacks. The sudden blockade sent global oil prices skyrocketing above 100 dollars per barrel, sending markets yo-yoing out of control.
On Sunday and Monday, the President discussed his deep interest in gathering a variety of nations to patrol the dangerous waterway. He claimed some nations were enthusiastic to help, though he refused to name them. Trump called China an interesting case study. When asked if Beijing would participate, he wouldn’t commit, but he made it clear he wants them involved. “Why are we maintaining the Hormuz Strait when it’s really there for China and many other countries?” Trump asked.
However, the chances of a deal that includes China appear incredibly low. Iran already announced it plans to allow Chinese energy shipments to pass safely through the strait. Trump also hinted at “other deeper reasons” why China might refuse to get involved.
On Saturday, Trump took to Truth Social to muse about the situation. He wrote that he hopes China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others affected by this artificial constraint will send ships to the area. Japan immediately rejected the idea, stating that it is not considering involvement, and other potential allies also signaled deep wariness about joining a new Middle East conflict.
Trump’s sudden call for international cooperation surprised many. Just a few days earlier, he publicly rejected a UK offer to deploy aircraft carriers to the region. Trump declared, “We don’t need them any longer,” adding, “We don’t need people that join Wars after we’ve already won!”
