- Trump’s trip to Beijing is scheduled for May 14-15, the White House says.
- Xi understood the reason for the delay, says Trump spokesperson.
- Trump hopes his visit to China will be “a monumental event.”
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in May during his first visit to China in eight years, a much-watched trip postponed due to the ongoing war with Iran.
Trump’s effort to reschedule the trip reflected the Republican president’s eagerness to project confidence in a challenging war in the Middle East while managing a tense relationship between the world’s largest economies.
Initially scheduled to travel next week, Trump will now visit Beijing on May 14 and 15, he said in a Truth Social post on Wednesday. Trump added that he would host Xi on a reciprocal visit to Washington later this year.
“Our representatives are finalizing preparations for these historic visits,” Trump said. “I am looking forward to spending time with President Xi at what I am sure will be a monumental event.”
The Chinese embassy said it had no information to provide about the visit announcement. Beijing typically does not detail Xi’s schedule more than a few days in advance.
The long-scheduled trip – and Washington’s broader effort to reset relations in the Asia-Pacific region – has been repeatedly overtaken by events.
In February, the Supreme Court restricted the US president’s power to impose tariffs, a source of leverage for Trump in negotiations with the United States’ third-largest trading partner. Later that month, Trump’s joint military operation with Israel against Iran introduced a new point of tension with Beijing, Tehran’s main oil buyer.
Trump’s last trip to China, in 2017, was the most recent by an American president. Trump’s visit in May will be the first in-person conversation between the leaders since an October meeting in South Korea, where they agreed to a trade truce.
White House says Xi understands Trump’s reasons for delay
The two-day trip will combine the lavish pomp and circumstance that has become a feature of Trump’s foreign trips with tough diplomacy.
While the two sides could reach goodwill agreements in Beijing on trade in agriculture and aircraft parts, they are also expected to discuss areas of deep tension such as Taiwan, where little progress is expected.
Trump has dramatically increased US arms sales to Taiwan during his second term. The measures have angered Beijing, which claims the democratically governed island as its own territory.
It is also unclear whether the war with Iran, which has shaken the global economy, will be resolved by the time of Xi’s meeting with Trump.
Trump has sought support from the world’s top oil consumers, including China, to help counter Iran’s efforts to close the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump’s request for assistance has so far been largely rejected. China, which imported around 12 million barrels of oil per day during the first two months of 2026, the most in the world, has not responded directly to his request.
Asked whether the war could end in time for the China trip, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters Wednesday that “we’ve always estimated about four to six weeks. So you can do the math.”
Leavitt also said that Trump and Xi discussed rescheduling the trip and that Xi had understood the reasons for doing so.
“President Xi understood that it is very important for him to be here during these combat operations right now,” he said.
