🇺🇸🇨🇳🇮🇷 Trump is heading to Beijing next week and the U.S.-Iran conflict is unresolved. That combination matters because China needs the Strait of Hormuz open, 20% of its energy imports pass through it. Xi has been calling for reopening since the blockade began. Trump arrives in Beijing as the man who closed it. That's a weak opening position for any negotiation. But the leverage runs both ways: Trump needs a win in Beijing. Xi needs the strait open. Iran needs sanctions relief. So China could now be recruited to pressure Iran from the other side. With 20 million barrels of oil and 20% of global LNG normally moving through the 33km-wide strait daily, and 10-12 million barrels still choked off, the economic stakes are massive. The next 10 days may determine whether the ceasefire holds or collapses as Beijing, Washington, and Tehran weigh oil, diplomacy, and war. Source: CNN
