‘Totally unacceptable’: Trump warns Xi against China’s support for Iran during Washington visit

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump reportedly warned Chinese President Xi Jinping during their Washington summit that any Chinese support for Iran was “totally unacceptable,” according to US Ambassador to China David Perdue.

Perdue said Trump raised the issue of direct and indirect Chinese assistance to Tehran during the meeting between the leaders on Thursday, September 24. Trump also later confirmed that the two leaders discussed the matter, while conflicting accounts emerged over whether Beijing had agreed to limit its support for Iran.

Trump warns Xi over China's support for Iran

Perdue said Trump had previously communicated Washington's position to Beijing and repeated the warning directly to Xi during their meeting this week.

“We have made it very clear to them weeks ago that any help that they would give Iran, whether it be direct or indirect, whether it be intelligence or parts or military equipment, was totally unacceptable. President Trump made that very clear again yesterday,” Perdue said in an interview with CNBC.

Trump separately confirmed that he had raised the issue with Xi when reporters asked him at the White House whether he had made Washington's position clear.

Perdue later also said that the US had received assurances from Beijing that it would not provide assistance to Iran. “We've seen movement ... on that already. That's what the commitment is. They assured us yesterday they're not doing that,” he told Fox News.

The warning was issued as reports surfaced of Chinese economic, intelligence and military support for Iran. China is also one of the major buyers of Iranian oil, as it purchases about 90% of Iran's oil exports. Reports have also alleged that Chinese entities supplied satellite imagery of a US-linked air base in Jordan before and after a missile strike that killed three US service members.

Trump had previously addressed the satellite imagery reports, saying China and the US conduct similar intelligence activities. “They basically do what we do,” Trump said. “When they say China spies on us, I say, ‘You’re right, and we spy on them too.'”

US-Iran peace talks continue amid China dispute

The US warning to China also comes in the backdrop of Washington's discussions with Iranian officials through special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff. The discussions have reportedly produced a proposed phased peace arrangement, with an initial stage involving the end of the US naval blockade of Iranian ports in exchange for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

At the same time, Iranian officials disputed the suggestion that China would limit its relationship with Tehran following Trump's meeting with Xi. A senior Iranian official said that China had assured Iran that it would not restrict its economic, political or military ties with the country because of pressure from Washington.