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May 14, 2026

Tehran 8:06 am

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TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump (C) is escorted by China's Vice President Han Zheng (R) upon his arrival at Beijing Capital Airport in Beijing on May 13, 2026. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Iran looms large over Trump’s China visit, but breakthrough unlikely

Analysts say China is cautiously looking to de-escalate the US-Iran war while limiting its direct involvement.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

Iran's IRGC holds anti-helicopter drills in Tehran: What to know

Iran said it downed two US helicopters last month as American forces use the aircraft for strikes in the Gulf.

FADEL Itani / AFP via Getty Images

In first, Lebanon files formal UN complaint against Iran: What to know

The move comes as relations between Iran and Lebanon continue to deteriorate in light of what is perceived as ongoing Iranian interference in Lebanese affairs via its proxy group, Hezbollah.

Latest News

Analysis

Ahead of Trump-Xi summit, Iran looks to China as guarantor — but with reservations

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands as they arrive for talks at the Gimhae Air Base in Busan, South Korea, on Oct. 30, 2025.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Kuwait unveils Iran IRGC infiltration plot, arrests 4: What to know

TTA KENARE/AFP/GettyImages

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Benjamin Houghton

In Durham, reporting on China in the Middle East

Rahim Rahimov

In Baku, reporting on Middle East-Caucasus ties

Mehrnaz Samimi

In Washington, DC, reporting on Iranian culture

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

A customer buys Iranian gold coins at a currency exchange office in Tehran's business district October 24, 2011. Iranian media reported last week that monetary authorities had reversed a six-month-old decision to cut interest on bank deposits, aiming to mop up excess cash in the economy and halt a dangerous rise of inflation. The news made sense to economist

Iran maneuvers to win back public trust in the rial

While the Iranian rial has jumped 25% over the past week, there are major questions about whether the Central Bank of Iran will be able to sustain the upward momentum.

U.S. President Donald Trump talks with U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in the Oval Office of the White House after it was announced the president had accepted the Haley's resignation in Washington, U.S., October 9, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC1E7B6A6960

Iran media: Haley resigned after failing Trump at UN Security Council

Iranian media has largely welcomed the surprise resignation of the US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, and her departure from the administration of President Donald Trump.

Shi'ite Muslims pray at the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, Iraq April 3, 2018. Picture taken April 3, 2018. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani - RC12CE0E18E0

Students at Qom seminary are leaving for Najaf

Due to political intervention and lack of freedom in the religious seminary, hundreds of Shiite clerics are migrating from Qom seminary to Najaf seminary for its traditional activities.

Russian servicemen watch the launch of the S-300 air defence system missile during the International Army Games 2016 at the Ashuluk military polygon outside Astrakhan, Russia, August 7, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov - S1AETUBLCHAA

Is Russia’s S-300 delivery to Syria a game-changer?

Russia's deployment of S-300 missile defense systems to Syria has both political and military significance, but might not necessarily change the overall balance of forces with regard to Israel.

A damaged building is seen following an earthquake in Sarpol-e Zahab county in Kermanshah, Iran November 13, 2017. REUTERS/Tasnim News Agency ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1220421FD0

Iran summons pundit, soccer icon over quake relief donations

Iran's judiciary has frozen accounts belonging to a prominent political commentator and a soccer icon who have been raising donations for a quake-stricken town in the country's west.

A general view shows the first meeting of national security secretaries of Afghanistan, China, Iran, India and Russia, in the Iranian capital Tehran on September 26, 2018. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran's launch of ‘Look East’ 2.0

The recent Regional Security Dialogue in Tehran is an indication that Iran sees security multilateralism as a mechanism to confront US pressure and maintain the regional balance of power in its favor.

A view shows the swearing-in ceremony for Iranian president Hassan Rouhani for a further term, at the parliament in Tehran, Iran, August 5, 2017. Nazanin Tabatabaee Yazdi/TIMA via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC18FF0579A0

Iranian MPs pass anti-terror funding bill despite death threats

Iran has taken an important step in gaining access to the international banking system.

Opposition to US plans for east Syria unites fragile Astana trio

No daylight among Iran, Turkey and Russia in opposing US policies in Syria; Can Iraq mediate between the United States and Iran?

An Iraqi fisherman pulls in his nets as his wife helps in their dug-out on the al-Huwaiza marshes northern Amara, 420 km south of Baghdad on June 13, 2011, considered to be the demarcation line with neighbouring Iran and which were drained by the regime of the late Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein during the Iraqi-Iranian war. Following the collapse of the previous regime, and the entrance of the US-led forces into Iraq in 2003, the water source was opened with fifty percent of the marsh land flooded allowing

Wildfires ravage marshlands on Iran-Iraq border

The destruction of important marshlands and other natural reserves in wildfires in Iran may be caused by humans as well as nature.

US scraps treaty with Iran while calling for another treaty

The US withdrew from a treaty with Iran after the treaty was used in a UN court to complain about its sanctions.

European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini talks to the media as she arrives for the informal meeting of European Union leaders ahead of the EU summit, in Salzburg, Austria, September 19, 2018. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner - RC1BCA4F9070

Will EU’s ‘SPV’ be able to sustain Iran trade, investment?

While a welcomed step, the SPV mechanism that Iran and the EU are working on is only the starting point of a process that needs to be further consolidated in order to enable trade and investment between the two sides.

A general view shows smog over northwestern Tehran November 23, 2010. Tehran is choking. Gridlock on urban highways makes the city feel more like Los Angeles than the Middle East, while adding a toxic yellow halo of smog to otherwise perennially blue skies. Picture taken November 23, 2010. To match feature IRAN-METRO/ REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN - Tags: ENVIRONMENT TRANSPORT CITYSCAPE) - GM1E6C800LV01

Intel: Why the Trump administration suddenly cares about Iran’s poor environmental record