Donald Trump’s UN address and summit with Xi Jinping delivered limited results: the China talks extended a trade truce by two months, allies largely rejected his requests for help in the Iran war, and his push for a Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire gained little traction.
The Iran war, which Trump started alongside Israel on February 28, had lasted nearly seven months, disrupted global energy supplies and spread to Yemen and the Red Sea shipping corridor. It has driven up US gasoline prices and divided Trump’s political base; Republicans risk losing control of Congress in November’s midterm elections.
At the UN, Trump threatened to “annihilate” Iran unless it agreed to a deal. Chinese state media reported that Xi urged him to oppose Taiwan independence. Beijing’s control of rare-earth minerals, which it has shown it can withhold in retaliation, has tempered Trump’s earlier tariffs-driven approach to China. A White House official rejected the view that Trump’s foreign policy had stalled, citing gains including preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon; Tehran says its program is peaceful.
