Iran warns of new attacks as Trump heads to Xi summit on war

Iran sharpened its warnings on the eve of Donald Trump’s trip to Beijing, where the president was set to hold a May 14-15 summit with Xi Jinping and discuss the widening war with Iran alongside trade and Taiwan. Tehran’s message was blunt: its forces were trained and ready for another U.S. attack, while Trump said he expected a “long talk” with Xi and insisted the United States did not “need any help” from Beijing.

The conflict has already run for more than 75 days and has become as much a test of military endurance as of diplomacy. A CBS News report said acting Pentagon comptroller Jules Hurst put the bill for U.S. taxpayers at $29 billion, above the $25 billion figure Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had cited earlier and short of internal estimates that had put the cost closer to $50 billion. The numbers underline how quickly a regional war has turned into a budgetary strain for Washington.

The military pressure is also reaching beyond the Middle East. An Atlantic Council tracker said 75% of available U.S. aircraft carriers were committed to the Iran war as of April 24, 2026, a concentration that raises questions about readiness if a separate crisis flares with China. That is one reason the Strait of Hormuz remains central to the talks. Trump has pressed Xi to use China’s leverage on Iran and to help reopen the waterway, through which a large share of global oil shipments moves.

Iran, for its part, has mixed warning with limited openness. Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian foreign minister, said Tehran remained willing to pursue a fair, equitable nuclear deal, but rejected coercion. Fars news agency said Iran had set five preconditions for resuming negotiations, including sanctions relief and compensation for war damages. An Iranian commander also said drills showed readiness to confront a new attack “at any place and at any time.”

Analysts said the Beijing meeting was unlikely to produce a breakthrough. Expectations for Trump and Xi were low, even as the stakes were high: China wants the war to end and has quietly worked with Pakistan and other governments on diplomacy, but it has not signaled that it will trade away its own leverage to rescue Trump’s position. For now, the triangle is hardening. Iran is signaling deterrence, Trump is seeking leverage, and Beijing is emerging as the outside power most capable of shaping whether the conflict spreads or stalls.