US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands before their meeting at Gimhae International Airport in Busan, South Korea on Oct 30, 2025. (Photo: AP/Mark Schiefelbein)

Trump says he asked China's Xi not to give Iran weapons

Trump last week threatened countries with an immediate 50 per cent tariff if they supplied Iran with weapons.

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WASHINGTON: Donald Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping in a letter not to give Iran weapons, and Xi responded that China was not supplying Tehran, the US president told Fox Business Network in an interview that aired on Wednesday (Apr 15).

Trump, in the interview taped on Tuesday, did not say when the letters were exchanged. Last week, he threatened countries with an immediate 50 per cent tariff if they supplied Iran with weapons.

"I wrote him a letter asking him not to do that, and he wrote me a letter saying that, essentially, he's not doing that," Trump told FBN's Mornings with Maria program.

He also said he did not expect shifts in the global oil market over the war on Iran and changes in Venezuela to impact the dynamics of his planned meeting with Xi next month. "He's somebody that needs oil. We don't," Trump said.

Source: Reuters/nh

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