Trump–Xi Summit Set to Test US Resolve as China Defies Iran Oil Sanctions 

USTR Jamieson Greer put Beijing on notice, saying China’s funding of Iranian terror ‘has to be a discussion item’ as Trump prepares for a high-stakes summit.
Trump–Xi Summit Set to Test US Resolve as China Defies Iran Oil Sanctions 
Car owners queue up to refuel at a gas station in Beijing on March 23, 2026. Lintao Zhang /Getty Images
|Updated:
0:00

President Donald Trump is set to challenge Chinese leader Xi Jinping over Beijing’s record-breaking purchases of Iranian oil during a high-stakes summit on May 14–15, as Washington warns that Chinese capital is sustaining Tehran’s military capabilities.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, speaking on Bloomberg Television on May 6, confirmed that China’s refusal to comply with U.S. sanctions “has to be a discussion item” when the leaders meet in Beijing. Greer characterized Iran as the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, asserting that any entity purchasing its crude is complicit in that activity.