Trump confirms meeting with China’s Xi Jinping delayed as war on Iran rages

US President Donald Trump delays his trip to Beijing due to Iran war while also seeking China’s help to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.US President Donald Trump has confirmed he is delaying plans to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of the month, as the US-Israeli war on Iran continues to consume most of Washington’s focus.“We are resetting the meeting,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday. “We’re working with China. They were fine with it.”Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Who is Joe Kent, and why did he resign as Trump’s counterterrorism chief?list 2 of 4Xi Jinping’s anticorruption drive sweeps up senior Chinese military chiefslist 3 of 4Ukraine sends 201 military experts to counter Iranian drones in the Gulflist 4 of 4Iran allowing more ships through Strait of Hormuz, data suggestend of listTrump’s comments that he wants to remain in Washington come as the war against Iran extends into its third week and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed to almost all global shipping.“Because of the war, I want to be here. I have to be here,” Trump said.Trump was scheduled to visit Beijing from March 31 to April 2. The president said he now plans to visit in “about five weeks” or towards the end of April. His last state visit to China was in 2017, during his first term.China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday that the US and China “remain in communication” about Trump’s plans to visit.Trump and Xi were expected to discuss a range of issues, from trade tariffs and Chinese export controls on rare earth minerals and magnets, to the US relationship with Taiwan and Chinese fentanyl exports.The US-China trade war was put on pause in October when Xi and Trump signed a truce following a meeting in South Korea, and both sides have been working on a more comprehensive trade agreement to resolve their dispute.While China and Xi were in Trump’s crosshairs at the start of his second term last year, the president’s tone towards both has softened since his meeting with the Chinese leader in South Korea.