(trump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops.html)  (../../../themes/custom/alm/icons/favicon.ico)  (../../../themes/custom/alm/icons/globe.svg)  (../../../themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-16x16.png)  (../../../themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-32x32.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-96x96.png)  (../../../themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-192x192.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-60x60.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-72x72.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-76x76.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-114x114.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-120x120.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-144x144.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-152x152.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-180x180.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-57x57.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-72x72.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-76x76.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-114x114.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-120x120.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-144x144.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-152x152.png)  (https://www.al-monitor.com/themes/custom/alm/icons/apple-touch-icon-180x180.png)                      (https://dev.visualwebsiteoptimizer.com)   (trump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops.html)  Trump downplays report China entities helped Iran before attack that killed US troops - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012 (../../../sites/default/files/css/css_7-e0G1L6KAG3rBMeqhyDFdnD7hvNSJYm84XC2ILfTzM.css@delta=0&language=en&theme=alm&include=eJw9jEEOxSAIBS9kypEMKhp-qTTAot6-dvM3k5m85KFc0HWGJ9w2RAtKKhRBlum51anlzrLTYdAk23M9qXGoZaxVrbFO-NvRbb_RbKkLDvhwCM8z4w-f5MuDLijolELRg_sC4WJo6wWYtjXV.css)  (../../../../fonts.googleapis.com/css2@family=Jost%253Aital,wght@0,400%3B0,500%3B0,600%3B0,700%3B1,400%3B1,500%3B1,600%3B1,700&display=fallback.css)  (../../../../fonts.googleapis.com/css2@family=Source+Serif+4%253Aital,wght@0,400%3B0,600%3B0,700%3B1,400%3B1,600%3B1,700&display=fallback.css)  (../../../sites/default/files/css/css_Awz720bL9owaXF_hFMOrs2ssm4x6nzcZ49hPZe6WzaI.css@delta=3&language=en&theme=alm&include=eJw9jEEOxSAIBS9kypEMKhp-qTTAot6-dvM3k5m85KFc0HWGJ9w2RAtKKhRBlum51anlzrLTYdAk23M9qXGoZaxVrbFO-NvRbb_RbKkLDvhwCM8z4w-f5MuDLijolELRg_sC4WJo6wWYtjXV.css)         (trump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops.html#main-content) Skip to main content       Click to see menu  (https://www.al-monitor.com/explore) (Search and explore AL-MONITOR) (search icon)  (search icon)    (https://www.al-monitor.com/newsletter/subscribe) Newsletters (https://www.al-monitor.com/events) Events   (https://www.al-monitor.com/) (Logo)  (Logo)    (https://www.al-monitor.com/checkout) Subscribe  (https://www.al-monitor.com/user/login?current=/originals/2026/09/trump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops) Sign in        The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012      Close Menu  Search    (Keywords, topics and authors) ()   (Search)     Search       Main navigation (https://www.al-monitor.com/newsletter/subscribe) (Newsletters)    (https://www.al-monitor.com/politics-security) Politics & Security     (https://www.al-monitor.com/culture) Culture     (https://www.al-monitor.com/technology) Technology     (https://www.al-monitor.com/economy-business) Economy & Business     (https://www.al-monitor.com/explore) Explore     (https://www.al-monitor.com/interviews) Interviews     (https://www.al-monitor.com/explore) Explore     (https://www.al-monitor.com/events) Events     (https://www.al-monitor.com/authors) Journalists      Secondary Navigation (https://www.al-monitor.com/turkey)   Turkey   (https://www.al-monitor.com/syria)   Syria   (https://www.al-monitor.com/saudi-arabia)   Saudi Arabia   (https://www.al-monitor.com/iran)   Iran   (https://www.al-monitor.com/united-arab-emirates)   United Arab Emirates   (https://www.al-monitor.com/palestine)   Palestine   (https://www.al-monitor.com/lebanon)   Lebanon   (https://www.al-monitor.com/israel)   Israel   (https://www.al-monitor.com/egypt)   Egypt   (https://www.al-monitor.com/china)   China   (https://www.al-monitor.com/united-states)   United States   (https://www.al-monitor.com/russia)   Russia   (https://www.al-monitor.com/qatar)   Qatar   (https://www.al-monitor.com/oman)   Oman   (https://www.al-monitor.com/iraq)   Iraq   (https://www.al-monitor.com/jordan)   Jordan   (https://www.al-monitor.com/algeria)   Algeria   (https://www.al-monitor.com/bahrain)   Bahrain   (https://www.al-monitor.com/kuwait)   Kuwait   (https://www.al-monitor.com/libya)   Libya   (https://www.al-monitor.com/morocco)   Morocco   (https://www.al-monitor.com/sudan)   Sudan   (https://www.al-monitor.com/tunisia)   Tunisia   (https://www.al-monitor.com/yemen)   Yemen   (https://www.al-monitor.com/somalia)   Somalia     See all            Trump downplays report China entities helped Iran before attack that killed US troops   (AL-MONITOR)    Sep 14, 2026       (https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.al-monitor.com%2Foriginals%2F2026%2F09%2Ftrump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops)     (https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Trump%20downplays%20report%20China%20entities%20helped%20Iran%20before%20attack%20that%20killed%20US%20troops&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.al-monitor.com%2Foriginals%2F2026%2F09%2Ftrump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops&via=AlMonitor)     (mailto:?subject=From%20AL-MONITOR.com%3A%20Trump%20downplays%20report%20China%20entities%20helped%20Iran%20before%20attack%20that%20killed%20US%20troops&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.al-monitor.com%2Foriginals%2F2026%2F09%2Ftrump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops%0A%0ARead%20more%20at%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.AL-MONITOR.com)     (https://google.com/preferences/source?q=https://www.al-monitor.com/)   Add AL-MONITOR on Google         (U.S. President Trump visits Ireland) (U.S. President Trump visits Ireland)      U.S. President Trump visits Ireland — Kylie Cooper      ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE, Sept 13 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday brushed aside a report that Iran acquired satellite images of a base in Jordan from Chinese entities before an attack that killed threeU.S. troops there in July. A recent report in the Wall Street Journal cited unnamed U.S. officials about the attack in Jordan. Asked whether he would mention the issue at an upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump did not directly answer, and instead equated the surveillance activities of China and the United States. "They basically do what we do," he told reporters aboard Air Force One. "When they say China spies on us, I say you're right and we spy on them too." The Chinese and U.S. presidentsare expected to meet in the United States on September 24, although China has yet to officially confirm that the meeting will take place. Trump on Sunday reiterated his view that he has a good relationship with Xi. "I think he's behaved reasonably well, and we behave reasonably well," Trump said as he flew back to the United States after a weekend trip to Ireland. The Wall Street Journal report, which Reuters could not immediately verify, said theU.S. officials declined to identify the Chinese entities that supplied the imagery to Iran and did not allege direct involvement by Beijing. On Monday, China said it has consistently and strictly fulfilled its international obligations, without elaborating further. "We firmly oppose unfounded suspicions and accusations made without evidence," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a regular news briefing when asked for a response. Trump's comments appeared consistent with the administration's recent efforts to play down wide-ranging tensions between Washington and Beijing, despite U.S. frustration over Beijing's close ties toTehran. At least 18 U.S. service personnel have been killed since the U.S-Israeli war with Iran began at the end of February. (Reporting by Bo Erickson and David Brunnstrom; Additional reporting by Joe Cash in Beijing; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)  You're reading a free AL-MONITOR Original  Want more like this?  AL-MONITOR All-Access gives you unlimited access to all our journalism, the full Daily Briefing, exclusive interviews, premium newsletters, and live events — for less than $2/week.  Email Address (https://www.al-monitor.com/checkout) See Offers  (https://www.al-monitor.com/visitor-agreement) Terms and (https://www.al-monitor.com/privacy) Privacy           (trump-downplays-report-china-entities-helped-iran-attack-killed-us-troops.html) (Logo)   The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012   (https://www.al-monitor.com/checkout) Subscribe Now   Countries  (https://www.al-monitor.com/turkey) Turkey  (https://www.al-monitor.com/saudi-arabia) Saudi Arabia  (https://www.al-monitor.com/iran) Iran  (https://www.al-monitor.com/united-arab-emirates) (United Arab Amirates) UAE  (https://www.al-monitor.com/israel) Israel  (https://www.al-monitor.com/palestine) Palestine  (https://www.al-monitor.com/egypt) Egypt  (https://www.al-monitor.com/qatar) Qatar  (https://www.al-monitor.com/lebanon) Lebanon  (https://www.al-monitor.com/syria) Syria    (https://www.al-monitor.com/iraq) Iraq  (https://www.al-monitor.com/jordan) Jordan  (https://www.al-monitor.com/oman) Oman  (https://www.al-monitor.com/bahrain) Bahrain  (https://www.al-monitor.com/kuwait) Kuwait  (https://www.al-monitor.com/yemen) Yemen  (https://www.al-monitor.com/libya) Libya  (https://www.al-monitor.com/sudan) Sudan  (https://www.al-monitor.com/tunisia) Tunisia  (https://www.al-monitor.com/morocco) Morocco  (https://www.al-monitor.com/algeria) Algeria    Sectors  (https://www.al-monitor.com/politics-security) Politics & Security  (https://www.al-monitor.com/economy-business) Economy & Business  (https://www.al-monitor.com/technology) Technology  (https://www.al-monitor.com/culture) Culture  (https://www.al-monitor.com/archives) Our Archive    Terms of Use  (https://www.al-monitor.com/visitor-agreement) Visitor Agreement  (https://www.al-monitor.com/privacy) Privacy Policy  (https://www.al-monitor.com/frequently-asked-questions-faqs) FAQs  (https://www.al-monitor.com/submission-guidelines) Submissions and Discussions Policy    About Us  (https://www.al-monitor.com/about) About  (https://www.al-monitor.com/authors) Journalists  (https://www.al-monitor.com/about#team) Team  (https://www.al-monitor.com/careers) Careers    (https://google.com/preferences/source?q=https://www.al-monitor.com/)   Add AL-MONITOR on Google    Sign up to our Daily Briefing  Keep up with AL-MONITOR's top stories with a morning digest from across the region.  (87e882df3ec4271bd20cb5064eb1ced3)  () (Email Address)   (Sign Up)     Sign Up   (form-Mc4yeUzRoRDi1tP8zwimRUwAdq5J_94u713V2d8qqOs)  (sign_up_form_1)       For subscription inquiries, please contact (mailto:subscription.support@al-monitor.com) subscription.support@al-monitor.com . For all other inquiries, please use (mailto:contactus@al-monitor.com) contactus@al-monitor.com .  ©2026 AL-MONITOR, LLC. All rights reserved.