Donald Trump and Xi Jinping met on May 13 and 14 for a two-day session. When the visit was planned, they were meant to focus on trade issues. But for the May 2026 summit, the focus was on war in Iran launched by Trump on February 28 with little planning and no indication of what he was hoping to achieve. There is little doubt that the war, which has now developed into skirmishes involving several states in the area, figured prominently in the Beijing talks. China, like Pakistan, is worried about how its own interests in the area would be adversely affected by this ongoing Middle East war. The two countries have close relations and have been involved in persuading Iran to reach a deal with Washington to end the war.

Pakistan hosted one round of US-Iran peace talks in Islamabad. On the American side, the negotiation was led by Vice-President JD Vance who was accompanied by Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, and Steve Witkoff, who has been involved in Middle East affairs. Vance held uninterrupted talks with the Iranian side in an Islamabad hotel for 21 hours, but the long talks did not bring the two sides closer. Another round of talks was planned, and the American team was on its way to Islamabad when negotiations between Washington and Tehran broke down. Pakistan, along with China, had been working hard to find a way to bring the two sides to agree on a plan of action that would resolve the issues........

© The Express Tribune