VOA Today's Focus (September 16, 2026) Experts Preview Three Core Issues of the 'Trump-Xi Summit': Iran, AI, and Taiwan

This article reports on related topics for the upcoming summit between the heads of state of the US and China in Washington, including financial ties with Iran, arms sales to Taiwan, and artificial intelligence regulation, while also highlighting global hotspots such as the US military publicly acknowledging for the first time that it has deployed weapons in space and India approving its first dengue fever vaccine.

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that when President Trump meets with Xi Jinping next week, they will discuss financial ties between China and Iran. The US has publicly acknowledged for the first time that it has deployed weapons in space, and China has urged an end to the expansion of space armaments. The US Department of War sent representatives to attend the Beijing Xiangshan Forum. Experts analyze that the US-China presidential summit may discuss the Taiwan issue. President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet in the US capital, Washington, on September 24. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday that the issue of Iran and the financial ties between China and Iran will be topics of discussion at the bilateral summit. President Trump and Xi Jinping are expected to discuss the Iran issue during their meeting next Thursday, including financial ties between China and Tehran. Treasury Secretary Bessent stated on Tuesday that the US and China have already had private discussions on this issue, and he will hold preliminary consultations with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng this weekend, with related discussions continuing next week during Xi's visit to the US.

Let's listen to what Treasury Secretary Bessent said: We have had good private discussions with China, and I expect this will continue. This weekend I will consult with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng to continue the discussion, and I believe related discussions will also continue during Chairman Xi's visit next week. The Trump administration is currently stepping up economic sanctions against Iran and demanding that other countries cut off support for Iran. President Trump was asked earlier by reporters whether he would raise the issue of Chinese entities providing satellite images of US military bases to Iran when he meets with Xi Jinping. President Trump did not respond directly, only stating that both the US and China engage in similar intelligence surveillance activities.

On Tuesday, the US military publicly acknowledged for the first time that it has deployed weapons in space, which is the Pentagon's clearest public statement to date regarding US weapons deployment in space. US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink confirmed on Monday that the US Space Force already possesses space control weapons deployed in orbit. Space control weapons is a broad military term that can refer to equipment protecting domestic satellites or jamming and suppressing enemy space systems; potential technologies include electronic jammers, lasers, highly maneuverable satellites, and kinetic weapons capable of directly destroying other spacecraft. Meink did not disclose the specific type, quantity, or capability of the weapons, but emphasized that the orbit-carrying space control weapons currently possessed by the Space Force can protect the US joint force against hostile adversary actions. The US Space Force has long warned that China and Russia are developing capabilities that could jam or attack US space systems.

On Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry urged the US to stop expanding armaments and preparing for war in outer space, stating its opposition to the weaponization of and battlefield status in outer space as well as an arms race, and calling for the preservation of global strategic stability, but it did not directly answer questions about whether China has deployed space weapons, nor did it specifically respond to US allegations that China is developing co-orbital satellite capabilities. Just as President Trump and Xi Jinping are about to meet, the US public acknowledgment of deploying weapons in space has also triggered a strong response from the Chinese side. Dennis Wilder, former senior director for Asian affairs at the White House National Security Council, stated in an interview with Voice of America that both the US and China have actually been developing space weapons all along, which is a realistic manifestation of the high-intensity military competition between the US and China; the Chinese side should not feel surprised by this, nor is it likely to affect the upcoming US-China presidential summit. Let's listen to Dennis Wilder's analysis: Both the US and China have their respective secret spacecraft platforms and send them into orbit through undisclosed launch missions. We do not know for sure what exact missions these spacecraft perform, but in terms of capability, they can completely be used to deploy space weapons. As for the weapons of this type currently possessed by the United States, they are very likely not what we call kinetic weapons, but are more likely to belong to non-kinetic counter-space weapons, such as using certain methods to disable the sensors or related systems of Chinese satellites, or transmitting specific signals to satellites to make them unable to operate normally. The Chinese side is very well aware of the US-related projects, so I believe this will not make them feel surprised, nor is it likely to become an issue hindering bilateral relations.

The US Department of War sent Kallas, chief director for Taiwan and Mongolia affairs, to attend the Xiangshan Forum held in Beijing this week. Not long before the forum convened, US Indo-Pacific Command chief Admiral Samuel Paparo also held his first face-to-face meeting with General Yang Zhibing, commander of the People's Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command. In addition, retired General Luo Yuan, a senior advisor to the Beijing Xiangshan Forum, emphasized in his speech that the Taiwan issue is the core of China's core interests and an inviolable red line. Regarding the communication between the US and Chinese militaries through the Xiangshan Forum on the eve of the upcoming US-China presidential summit, and PLA retired generals drawing a red line on the Taiwan issue again using this occasion, Dennis Wilder, former senior director for Asian affairs at the White House National Security Council, stated in an interview with Voice of America that the US Department of War sending high-level officials to attend the Xiangshan Forum is of great significance, and the Chinese side also understands this as a signal released by the US side indicating that the US wishes to improve military-to-military relations under the impetus of President Trump. President Xi Jinping has made it very clear to President Trump that the USD 14 billion arms sales to Taiwan should not proceed, and my judgment is that President Xi Jinping will once again tell President Trump next week that this arms sale should not take place. If Xi agrees to travel to Mar-a-Lago or to Miami to meet President Trump in December, then President Trump is very likely to postpone the decision on this arms sale once again, so I expect this arms sale will not proceed this year; as for what will happen next year, it needs to be observed continuously.

The MQ-9B Sea Guardian drone sold by the US to Taiwan took off for the first time in eastern Taiwan on September 14 to conduct flight tests. Let's watch the television report by Voice of America reporter Liu Enming. According to the MQ-9B manufacturer, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, the MQ-9B Sea Guardian is an extended model of the SkyGuardian, designed specifically for maritime missions, equipped with quickly detachable maritime-specific sensors, capable of executing beyond-line-of-sight flight missions via satellite links under various weather conditions, with an endurance of more than 30 hours, and able to obtain real-time situational awareness across vast maritime areas. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems specifically introduced that what makes the MQ-9B Sea Guardian special is that it not only integrates the most advanced maritime intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities, but is also the first model among similar remotely piloted aircraft systems capable of simultaneously achieving real-time search and patrol above and below the sea surface, capable of monitoring and tracking the traces of submarines below the sea surface. According to Taiwan media reports, among the four MQ-9Bs sold by the US to Taiwan, the first batch of two was handed over in the US this March, and they conducted their first test flights on September 14 in the airspace of eastern Taiwan. According to a research report by Kao Chih-jung, a researcher at Taiwan's Institute for National Defense and Security Research, the stationing of the MQ-9B means that Taiwan's aerial intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities have extended toward China's inland, open seas, and outer waters. He stated that at standard operational altitudes, the surveillance radius of the MQ-9B can reach about 360 kilometers, so a single MQ-9B hovering at high altitude can grasp the dynamics of the entire Taiwan Strait and parts of the Bashi Channel and Miyako Strait. The MQ-9B is a more advanced model of the MQ-9A Reaper reconnaissance and attack drone, capable of executing multiple attack missions such as anti-surface warfare and anti-submarine warfare. The Taiwan military stated that Taiwan...

Taiwan's MQ-9B drones will be primarily used for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions rather than as strike drones. Their key task is to monitor People's Liberation Army warships and China Coast Guard vessels conducting gray-zone intrusions around Taiwan, and to form a high-low combination with Taiwan's domestically produced Teng Yun large drones to complete monitoring missions in the waters surrounding Taiwan. Reported by Voice of America correspondent Liu Enming in Washington.

Will arms sales to Taiwan be discussed at the upcoming US-China presidential summit next week? David Sacks, a fellow for Asia studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, told Voice of America that he believes Xi Jinping may wish to push the US to indefinitely postpone arms sales to Taiwan. Let's listen to the expert's perspective: I think the Taiwan issue will occupy a prominent place at this summit, so I surmise that Xi Jinping will bring up the Taiwan issue so that it becomes a major topic in the private talks between the two in Washington. As for what Xi Jinping specifically hopes to get from President Trump, I think the most prominent issue is likely to be arms sales. After meeting with Xi Jinping in Beijing, President Trump stated that he was putting arms sales on hold, calling it a good negotiating chip. Of course, since then we have seen arms sales to Taiwan approved to some extent, so I think Xi's primary task is to continue delaying arms sales. I expect he will mention the upcoming G20 summit as well as the APEC summit, and indicate to President Trump that if the US approves arms sales to Taiwan, it could affect whether Xi will meet with Trump at the G20 or APEC summits. This will effectively drag the military issue out until the end of the year or even postpone it into next year, but I think Xi Jinping wants to indefinitely postpone arms sales, and this will be his top priority.

In addition to the Iran and Taiwan issues, artificial intelligence is also expected to become a focal point of discussion at the US-China presidential summit. Faced with the security risks brought about by the rapid development of AI, can the US and China reach a consensus on regulation and security responsibilities? Scott Singer, co-director of the China AI Initiative at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, believes that the outside world should not expect the US and China to reach a grand bargain in the short term, but this does not mean that the two countries cannot achieve substantive progress. Let's listen to the expert's perspective: I think the most important thing is that we must adjust our expectations for the goals of this meeting based on how diplomacy actually operates. After a large amount of evidence showing that artificial intelligence is posing serious risks, and after Anthropic employees resigned in a very public manner, many people called for an international treaty and some kind of grand bargain as soon as possible, hoping to see such a solution by September. But in reality, for two countries with vastly different interest demands and different perceptions of the risks posed by these technologies, reaching any form of agreement takes time, not to mention the need to build the technical infrastructure that can genuinely enforce such an agreement, but this should not stop us from achieving genuine progress.

Next, let's turn to a major breakthrough in global health, as India's efforts to combat dengue virus infection have ushered in significant progress. India has approved its first dengue vaccine. Over the past five years, India has reported more than one million cases of dengue, with the actual figure likely even higher, and this vaccine is expected to hit the market as early as next year. Let's watch the VOA television report. Neeraj, an 18-year-old living in an urban slum on the edge of India's capital, says his biggest economic worry is medical expenses. In recent years, his neighbors have been hit hard by dengue and malaria, so the advent of the vaccine is good news for him. This vaccine should be available to everyone, because to be honest, everyone here needs it, and every single life is precious; it should not be accessible only to the rich while being out of reach for the poor, so accessibility to the vaccine should be equal. India's tropical climate makes the country particularly vulnerable to dengue, which is transmitted through the bites of infected mosquitoes that typically breed in stagnant water after monsoon rains. Although officials regularly conduct fumigation to drive away mosquitoes and dispatch teams to eradicate mosquito larvae, the disease remains a threat. However, doctors say this new vaccine could be a game-changer. Widespread vaccination coverage will certainly reduce the transmission of dengue and ensure that dengue is no longer a public health problem in the near future; it will definitely reduce the probability of hospitalization, and that is what matters most. In this country of nearly 1.5 billion people, medical facilities are often overwhelmed during outbreaks. Qdanga, a vaccine from Japan's Takeda Pharmaceutical, promises to reduce hospitalization rates by 80% to 90%. If the data is accurate, doctors say this vaccine could help alleviate the pressure on India's healthcare system, but for those scraping by to make ends meet, paying for the vaccine is impossible. My family earns only 150 dollars a month, and there are five people in the household, including my son and his three children. If this vaccine is expensive, how does that help us? According to preliminary estimates, once available next year, this vaccine will need to be imported, and the price per dose may be between 35 and 70 dollars. Doctors believe its true impact will only become apparent after it is integrated into India's national immunization program, which currently covers more than 26 million newborns annually. If a large number of people are already vaccinated, they will not transmit the virus to others through mosquitoes. The same dengue vaccine has already been included in Brazil's national program, and experts say that due to similar climates and dense urban populations, it is expected to become an important tool for India in combating this mosquito-borne virus. Reported by VOA's Ishan Garg in New Delhi.