There are moments in diplomacy conducted through letters and TRUTH Social posts that nonetheless carry genuine weight. This may be one of them.
President Trump disclosed Wednesday that he had written directly to Chinese President Xi Jinping, warning him against supplying weapons to Iran, and that Xi wrote back to say he was doing no such thing.
“I had heard that China is giving weapons to Iran,” Trump told Fox Business’ Mornings with Maria. “And 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.”
🚨 JUST IN: Chinese President Xi ASSURED President Trump he isn’t arming Iran
“I wrote a letter to Xi. I asked him not to give Iran weapons. He wrote me a letter, and he is saying that he is essentially not doing that.”
He doesn’t want FAFO! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/mutqLNWsb7
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) April 15, 2026
The interview, taped Tuesday, offered no timeline for the exchange. Last week, the president had threatened any nation supplying Iran with weapons with an immediate 50-percent tariff increase.
Hours after the segment aired, Trump posted on TRUTH Social in a tone that was part strategic announcement, part personal vindication. “China is very happy that I am permanently opening the Strait of Hormuz,” he wrote. “They have agreed not to send weapons to Iran.”
On oil markets, Trump expressed confidence that the war and shifting dynamics in Venezuela would leave American interests unmoved — a posture that reflects his broader framing of the United States as a nation that produces, not merely consumes. “He’s somebody that needs oil,” Trump said of Xi. “We don’t.”
Both leaders are now preparing for a meeting expected within weeks. Trump, characteristically, previewed it with a flourish: “President Xi will give me a big, fat hug when I get there.”
He closed with a line that was equal parts olive branch and warning: “Doesn’t that beat fighting? But remember — we are very good at fighting, if we have to.”
The sentence, stripped of its punctuation and bluster, may be the most honest summary of where things stand.
“China is very happy that I am permanently opening the Strait of Hormuz. I am doing it for them, also – And the World. This situation will never happen again. They have agreed not to send weapons to Iran…” – President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/g2LbmMJS5a
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) April 15, 2026
