Why is Iran setting new endgame dates in May?
The White House announced on Wednesday that President Donald Trump will travel to Beijing for a rescheduled summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping on May 14 and 15.
Trump was scheduled to visit China later this month but previously announced he was delaying the trip so he could stay in Washington to help prevent a US and Israeli war against Iran.
The Republican president had announced a rescheduled visit, even as the war in Iran continues and the US is pressuring Tehran to acceptTrump believes the Iran war could end soon.
White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt, when asked whether the new travel dates show Trump believes the Iran war could end soon, sounded optimistic that the conflict could reach its final stages before Trump’s visit.
Leavitt responded, “We’ve always estimated four to six weeks.” “You can calculate that yourself.”
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The China trip had been planned for months but came to an end when Trump pressured Beijing and other world powers to use their military power to protect the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway vital to the flow of oil.
Trump, while meeting with Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin in the Oval Office last week, said he would visit China in five or six weeks rather than at the end of the month. He said he would “reschedule” his visit with Xi.
Trump then said, “We’re working with China – they have no problem with that.” “I’m excited to meet President Xi. I think he’s excited to meet me.
Trump’s trip to China is considered an opportunity to broker a fragile trade truce between the two superpowers, but it has become entangled with his effort to find an end to the war in Iran.
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Shortly after pressuring China and other countries to send warships to secure access to Middle Eastern oil, Trump indicated last week that his visit plans depended on Beijing’s response, though he then said the US did not need help from allies that rejected his request.
