President Trump said both Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin personally assured him they will not sell weapons to Iran, a claim that, if it holds, would cut off two of the countries most capable of arming Tehran as its war grinds into its fifth month. Trump wrote on Truth Social that Xi made the pledge at their recent meeting in Beijing and said it extends to Chinese companies as well, not just the government. He framed the assurance as tied to the broader US-China relationship, saying he is doing Xi "very big favors" in return. On Putin, Trump said the Russian leader made a similar commitment despite the ongoing war in Ukraine, where Russia's relationship with the US continues alongside its ties to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump drew a distinction with his own weapons sales, saying the US sells arms to NATO countries rather than directly to Ukraine, and that what those countries do with the weapons afterward is not something he tracks. He added that any weapons flow from China or Russia to Iran would be "very bad for them," without elaborating on what response that might trigger. The statement comes as Iran has already rejected a US-backed ceasefire proposal from Iraqi mediators, and as oil and shipping routes near the Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea remain under pressure from the conflict. Neither Beijing nor Moscow has publicly confirmed Trump's account of the conversations.
Why it matters · If true, this removes two of the few countries capable of resupplying Iran mid-war, but the claim is unverified and Iran itself has already rejected a ceasefire, so the war's trajectory hasn't actually changed yet.
Worth asking · Trump says China and Russia both promised not to arm Iran, but neither government has confirmed it and Iran just rejected a ceasefire anyway. Do you take this pledge at face value, or is it more likely posturing that won't survive contact with the war's next escalation?