Following his high-profile three-day summit in Beijing, President Donald Trump made clear he does not want to get into a war with China over Taiwan.“I’m not looking to have somebody to go independent and, you know, we’re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war,” Trump told Fox News’ Bret Baier. “I’m not looking for that. I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down.”When asked about U.S. weapons sales to the island, Trump said: “We’re gonna see what happens.” In December, the administration authorized an $11 billion weapons package for Taipei, but it can’t be finalized until Trump passes it to Congress.Taiwan has proven a perennial sore-spot in U.S.-China relations. Beijing sees Taiwan as a breakaway part of mainland China that must be unified. Taiwan, however, is a self-governing democracy. The U.S. does not recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state, but it is legally obligated to help the island defend itself.During his summit in Beijing, Chinese President Xi Jinping warned Trump of “clash or even conflict” if the Taiwan issue is mishandled, saying that it can push China-US relations into "a very dangerous place”.Earlier, Trump claimed he and Xi have agreed on how they want to end the Iran war, and tha Xi offered his assistance in negotiating a deal.Xi hailed the two-day summit as “historic”, adding: “Together, we affirmed the new position of a constructive, strategic and stable China-US relationship."Trump says China and Taiwan should 'cool down'During a teaser clip of his interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, President Trump addressed the issue of Taiwan — a perennial sore-spot in U.S.-China relations — claiming that both parties should “cool down.”Beijing sees Taiwan as a breakaway part of mainland China that must eventually be unified. Taiwan is a self-governing democracy, and polls indicate the public largely does not want to be ruled by Xi Jinping. The U.S. formally recognizes the People's Republic of China as the government of China, and it does not recognize Taiwan as a sovereign nation. But, it is legally obligated — via the Taiwan Relations Act — to provide the island with the means to defend itself.“I’m not looking to have somebody to go independent and, you know, we’re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war,” Trump told Baier. “I’m not looking for that. I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down.”When asked about U.S. weapons sales to the island, Trump said: “We’re gonna see what happens.”Brendan Rascius15 May 2026 21:11White House refutes claim that Trump consumed alcohol during China banquetThe White House on Friday pushed back on claims that President Trump consumed alcohol during his trip to China.The speculation followed a state banquet in Beijing, where Trump was seen raising and sipping from a wine glass during a toast honoring U.S.-China relations. Trump, whose older brother struggled with alcoholism before his death, is known to be a teetotaler.Footage of the moment spread rapidly online, prompting some viewers to suggest the president may have briefly broken with his personal practice as a gesture of respect to Chinese President Xi Jinping.But the administration claimed otherwise.“The insinuation here is false by suggesting that he would somehow compromise himself for a toast,” White House Communications Director Steven Cheung wrote on X. “President Trump doesn’t drink alcohol.”Brendan Rascius15 May 2026 21:05Trump ‘doesn’t feel optimistic’ jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai will be freedUS president Donald Trump has said he “doesn’t feel optimistic” that jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai will be freed.Ahead of his high-stakes meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week, Trump had said he would raise Mr Lai’s imprisonment in Hong Kong and the arrest of pastor Jin Mingri of Zion Church in the mainland.Rebecca Whittaker reports...Brendan Rascius15 May 2026 20:44Markets respond to lack of breakthrough in BeijingFinancial markets performed gloomily after the Beijing summit failed to provide substantial progress. Though some trade deals were made – such as China’s agreement to buy 200 Boeing jets and potentially 750 more afterwards – questions regarding the war in Iran loomed large.The S&P 500 was more than 1 percent down at its open, ending a rally in tech shares that had brought it record heights. The price of domestic crude oil also showed the strain, up nearly 3 percent to $104 per barrel. Oisin Mcilroy15 May 2026 19:45Xi accepts Trump's invitation to visit USXi Jinping has accepted Trump’s invitation to visit the United States, according to Chinese state media. China’s official Xinhua news agency cited Beijing’s top diplomat Wang Yi when it confirmed that Xi would travel to the US later this year, though did not give further details. During a state banquet in Beijing on Thursday, Trump invited Xi to visit the White House on 24 September.Oisin Mcilroy15 May 2026 19:00Putin to visit Xi days after Trump's departureRussian President Vladimir Putin is to meet with Xi Jinping next week in Beijing, the Kremlin announced.Putin will likely be eager to hear how his Chinese counterpart’s meeting with the US president went and reaffirm Russia-China unity against the West amid seemingly deepening relations between Washington and Beijing. Oisin Mcilroy15 May 2026 18:15Trump calls reporter 'treasonous' in tense Air Force One exchangeTrump called a reporter ‘treasonous’ for not accepting that the US has achieved a ‘total victory’ in its war against Iran.The New York Times’s White House and National Security Correspondent David Sanger asked “What would be the use in repeating the bombing?” after Trump suggest the US might restart their air campaign. Here’s the full exchange:Oisin Mcilroy15 May 2026 17:30Trump says he and Xi may meet four times in 2026President Trump told reporters on Air Force One he and President Xi could meet three more times this year, including potentially another trip to China.In addition to this week’s summit in Beijing, Trump suggested future meetings could include December’s G-20 meeting in Miami and a conference in November of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in Shenzhen.During the Beijing summit, Trump also invited Xi to visit the US in September. It was not clear whether Xi accepted the invitation.Oisin Mcilroy15 May 2026 16:45Trump open with Xi about mutual cyber attacksAsked by reporters whether he brought up with Xi the subject of Chinese cyber attacks on the US, Trump said suggested neither of them dodged the topic:“I did. And he talked about attacks we did in China,” he said.“You know, what they do, we do too. We spy like hell on them too. I told him, 'we do a lot of stuff to you that that you don't know about.’”Oisin Mcilroy15 May 2026 16:00Trump refused to comment potential Taiwan troop deploymentsTrump said he declined to answer Xi when asked whether the US would send troops to Taiwan in the event of a conflict. “I said, ‘I don’t talk about those things,'” Trump claims to have told Xi.“I don’t want to say,” he added to reporters. “There’s only one person that knows that. You know who it is? Me.” Oisin Mcilroy15 May 2026 15:30