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Donald Trump on China, Russia, and the Iran Conflict

Friday, June 19, 2026
5 min read
Donald Trump on China, Russia, and the Iran Conflict

Donald Trump brought up China and Russia yesterday. He thanked Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin. Said they stayed neutral during America’s fight with Iran. Apparently, they avoided doing anything that would mess up Washington’s military push or any peace talks happening afterward.

He made these comments at a press conference. It happened on the side of the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France. This was right after some ceasefire aGreement got adopted.

“I want to thank China, President Xi,” Trump told reporters. “I was with him. He stayed neutral. Totally neutral. I appreciate that.” Then he shifted focus. “And I want to thank Vladimir Putin. He was very neutral too. They could have made things much harder for us.”

Trump really focused on Beijing. He singled out China for credit, saying Beijing stopped short of sending weapons or shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles into Tehran during the whole conflict. That seemed like a big deal to him.

He went into some specifics there. “They could have sent in an oil ship with six destroyers alongside it, on each side,” he said. “They didn’t do that. President Xi helped me. He tried to help. I think he probably helped get it solved.” That felt like a major point some sort of unspoken maneuvering behind the scenes.

This whole tone was a bit different from how Trump usually talked to his allies. You see, he’d been criticizing countries for not stepping up in the military action or trying to clear out the Strait of Hormuz after Iran blocked it off. That contrast hit hard.

The reality is Beijing and Moscow both have really close ties with Tehran. It’s complicated. China condemned the US strikes on Iran as a violation of Iranian sovereignty, naturally. But there’s more going on. US intelligence officials suggested that Beijing supplied Tehran with stuff that could be used for military purposes during the war. That’s what people familiar with it are saying.

Meanwhile, China’s independent oil refiners were major customers for Iran throughout the fighting. This happened even though the US had put sanctions in place. Russia separately warned something else entirely. They said this whole conflict risked kicking off a nuclear arms race over the Middle East. It was a warning tossed into the mix.

A spokesperson from China’s embassy in Washington did speak out. They said Beijing’s position had been “consistent.” And they added that they were “working tirelessly for the end of fighting and peace.” Russia’s side, though? They didn't actually respond to anyone asking for comment on that specific point.

It just shows how much layers there are in this mess. Everything is connected somehow, even if it doesn't look like a neat timeline when you try to put it together perfectly.

Written by Gree News Team — Senior Editorial Board

Gree News Team covers international news and global affairs at Gree News. Our collective of senior editors is dedicated to providing independent, accurate, and responsible journalism for a global audience.

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