WASHINGTON — Top diplomatic and economic officials of the United States and China held online talks on Thursday, as part of preparations for a summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping set to take place in Beijing next month. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had separate conversations with their respective counterparts, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Vice Premier He Lifeng, as the Trump-Xi summit is slated to occur on May 14 and 15. The talks came amid speculation that the high-stakes summit could be delayed once again as peace negotiations between Washington and Tehran have stalled amid an impasse over issues surrounding the vital Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program. If held, the summit is expected to touch on a series of bilateral, regional and global issues, including bilateral trade, the security of Taiwan and the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. During a phone call with Rubio, Wang said that the “Taiwan question” involves China’s “core” interests and constitutes the “biggest risk” in relations between the Unite
