U.S. President Donald Trump participates in an arrival ceremony at Beijing Capital International Airport during his visit to the country, in Beijing, China, May 13, 2026. REUTERS\/Evan Vucci<\/p>\n
Trump Heads to Beijing as Iran Expands Control Over Strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n
By Nandita Bose and Jana Choukeir<\/p>\n
WASHINGTON\/DUBAI, May 13 (Reuters)\u00a0\u2013\u00a0U.S. President Donald Trump has said he does not expect to need\u00a0China\u2019s help to end the war in Iran and ease Tehran\u2019s grip on the Strait of\u00a0Hormuz, in remarks made before he arrived in Beijing on Wednesday for a\u00a0summit\u00a0with President Xi Jinping.<\/p>\n
The war is expected to feature in talks between Trump and Xi over the next two days, but Trump downplayed Beijing\u2019s potential role in ending\u00a0the conflict, which has choked off traffic through a key waterway that typically carries about one-fifth of the world\u2019s oil supply.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think we need any help with Iran. We\u2019ll win it one way or the other, peacefully or otherwise,\u201d he told reporters in Washington before departing for\u00a0China.<\/p>\n
Iran has appeared to firm up its control over the Strait of\u00a0Hormuz\u00a0in recent days, cutting\u00a0deals\u00a0with Iraq and Pakistan to ship oil and liquefied natural gas from the region, according to sources with knowledge of the matter.<\/p>\n
Iranian officials have signaled they see that control as a long-term strategic goal. An army spokesperson said supervision of the waterway could generate revenue amounting to twice Iran\u2019s oil income, while strengthening its foreign policy leverage.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter this war ends, there will be no place for retreat,\u201d the spokesperson said, according to comments carried by ISNA news agency.<\/p>\n
More than one month after a tenuous ceasefire took effect, U.S. and Iranian demands to end the war remain far apart.<\/p>\n
Washington has called for Tehran to scrap its nuclear program and lift its hold on the strait, while Iran has demanded compensation for war damage, an end to the U.S. blockade and a halt to fighting on all fronts, including in\u00a0Lebanon, where Israel is battling Iran-backed Hezbollah. Trump has dismissed those positions as \u201cgarbage.\u201d<\/p>\n
CHINESE SUPERTANKER CROSSES STRAIT<\/p>\n
The Trump administration said on Tuesday that senior U.S. and Chinese officials had agreed last month that no country should be able to charge tolls on traffic through the region, in an effort to project consensus on the issue ahead of the summit.<\/p>\n
China, a major buyer of Iranian oil that maintains close ties with Tehran, did not dispute that account.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, a Chinese supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude\u00a0sailed through\u00a0the Strait of\u00a0Hormuz, ship-tracking data showed, marking the third known passage by a Chinese oil tanker through the channel since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28.<\/p>\n
Other countries are exploring shipping arrangements similar to Tehran\u2019s deals with Iraq and Pakistan, sources said, potentially entrenching Tehran\u2019s control of the waterway through which fertilizers, petrochemicals and other bulk commodities vital to global supply chains normally flow.<\/p>\n
As the costs of the conflict mount, Trump said Americans\u2019\u00a0financial struggles\u00a0were not a factor in his decision-making on the war.<\/p>\n
Data released on Tuesday showed that U.S. consumer inflation accelerated in April, with the annual rate posting its\u00a0largest gain in three years\u00a0as food, rent and airfares rose.<\/p>\n
Asked to what extent the economic strain on Americans was motivating him to strike a deal, Trump replied: \u201cNot even a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think about Americans\u2019 financial situation \u2026,\u201d Trump said before leaving for\u00a0China. \u201cI think about one thing: We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon.\u201d<\/p>\n
The remarks are likely to draw scrutiny as cost-of-living concerns remain a top issue for voters ahead of November\u2019s midterm elections.<\/p>\n
WAR HITS OIL SUPPLIES<\/p>\n
The conflict is weighing heavily on global energy markets. Global oil supply\u00a0will fall\u00a0by around 3.9 million barrels per day across 2026 and undershoot demand due to disruptions caused by the Iran war, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday, with more than 1 billion barrels of Middle East supply already lost.<\/p>\n
Brent\u00a0crude futures were steady at around $108 per\u00a0barrel, after a three-day rally driven by the\u00a0Hormuz\u00a0deadlock.<\/p>\n
Surveys show the war is\u00a0unpopular with U.S. voters\u00a0less than six months before nationwide elections. Two out of three Americans, including one in three Republicans and almost all Democrats, think Trump has not clearly explained why the country has gone to war, according to a\u00a0Reuters\/Ipsos poll.<\/p>\n
ISRAEL CONTINUES TO STRIKE LEBANON<\/p>\n
Iran has demanded security guarantees for Lebanon as part of its proposal to end the wider war, but despite a U.S.-mediated ceasefire announced last month, Israel has continued to strike Hezbollah.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday,\u00a0Israeli airstrikes\u00a0on cars in Lebanon killed 12 people, including two children, according to Lebanon\u2019s health ministry.<\/p>\n
Some of the strikes targeted vehicles well beyond the main theater of conflict in the south, on the coastal highway south of Beirut, security sources said.<\/p>\n