Chinese youth hold American and Chinese flags as they join officials to welcome U.S. President Donald Trump at Beijing Capital International Airport, May 13, 2026 in Beijing, China. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
(BEIJING, China) — President Donald Trump arrived on Wednesday in Beijing for a multi-day summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, during which he said he’d seek to deepen diplomatic and economic ties between the world’s two largest economic powers.
After his arrival at Beijing Capital International Airport on Wednesday evening, Trump’s itinerary included a welcome ceremony, a bilateral meeting with Xi at the Great Hall of the People later in the day and a state banquet that night, according to the White House.
“We have a lot of things to discuss,” Trump said on Tuesday as he departed the White House, where he fielded questions about what would be on the table during the high-stakes summit. The summit begins as the effects of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran continue to ripple around the globe and the U.S. economy remains a pressing issue at home.
The president was asked whether the pair would discuss diplomatic ways to end the war with Iran, which is in its third month. China is a key buyer of Iranian oil, which could give it considerable diplomatic leverage over Tehran, experts told ABC News. Trump said the U.S. had Iran “very much under control,” adding that it would be among the topics discussed.
“We’re either going to make a deal or they’re going to be decimated, one way or the other. We win,” Trump said. “We’re going to be talking about, we’re going to be talking with President Xi.”
Trump traveled on Air Force One with a more than a dozen U.S. executives, including Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Apple CEO Tim Cook. Trump said on social media on Tuesday that he planned to ask Xi to “open up” the Chinese economy.
Asked to respond on Wednesday, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, said that the scheduled diplomatic meetings were expected to play “an irreplaceable role in providing strategic guidance for China-U.S. relations.”
“During the visit, the two heads of state will have an in-depth exchange of views on major issues concerning China-U.S. relations and world peace and development,” Guo added, according to a transcript published by the ministry. “China stands ready to work with the U.S. to expand cooperation and manage differences in the spirit of equality, respect and mutual benefit, and provide more stability and certainty for a transforming and volatile world.”
Army soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 82nd Artillery Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division artillery lookout atop a M109 A7 Paladin self propelled Howitzer during live fire training on April 29, 2026, in Fort Hood, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images, FILE)
(WASHINGTON) — The Army is grappling with a sudden budget crunch and scrambling to slash training costs across broad swaths of the force, according to internal documents reviewed by ABC News and multiple U.S. officials.
The move is to make up for a shortfall of some $4 billion to $6 billion, according to one of the officials, as the service has drastically expanded its operational footprint at home and abroad.
The cuts, which range from elite schools to unit-level training, have triggered a wave of abrupt cancellations and unusually aggressive spending scrutiny months before the fiscal year ends Sept. 30.
The service’s multibillion-dollar shortfall is the product of a widening set of operational demands and rising costs across the force.
Major drivers, a U.S. official noted, have been costs associated with the Iran war and an expanding mission securing the southern U.S. border.
Additionally, expansive National Guard missions, including the ongoing deployment in Washington, D.C., which alone is projected to cost roughly $1.1 billion this year, according to estimates from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.
At the same time, the service is absorbing ballooning personnel expenses and stepping in to cover missions tied to Department of Homeland Security funding lapses, including at the southern border and construction projects. The Army is expected to be reimbursed for covering down for some of DHS’ expenses incurred during the record 76-day DHS shutdown.
The Army’s III Armored Corps, an umbrella of the Army’s heavy armor and cavalry units, is expected to bear a lot of the brunt, a document outlining projections to units on consequences of funding cuts shows.
That internal plan warns that the corps’ aviation units will deploy next year at “a lower state of readiness,” and “career stagnation” of mid-level officers who would oversee key training events and noted it would take a full year for units to rebuild “combat proficiency.”
The corps commands some 70,000 soldiers representing nearly half of the service’s combat power.
The reductions there include slashing roughly half of the formation’s budget and gutting pilots’ flight hours down to minimum mandatory levels.
The cuts to flights come as the Army’s aviation enterprise faces mounting scrutiny following a string of high-profile mishaps, much of that historically been attributed to fatigue and dwindling pilot flying time in recent years.
Also among the moves: an upcoming Army Sapper Course, the service’s premier combat engineering school, was canceled, while an artillery course set to begin Monday at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, was abruptly called off. Other units and military training courses are also auditing more closely how many soldiers it can train, two U.S. officials explained.
“Army commanders are taking all necessary measures to prioritize critical readiness and operational requirements, ensuring we operate responsibly within our currently enacted funding levels,” Col. Marty Meiners, an Army spokesperson, said in a statement.
The Defense Department declined to say whether similar training cuts are being made across the military or are largely confined to the Army, referring ABC News questions to the individual services.
The cuts come amid skyrocketing fuel costs, which can quickly drive up the price of large-scale training exercises, aviation operations and travel. But it remains unclear whether those soaring costs are directly behind the moves now rippling through Army commands.
The Pentagon’s belt-tightening measures were briefly mentioned on Capitol Hill Tuesday as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth testified before lawmakers on the Pentagon’s request for a $1.5 trillion budget. But defense officials never directly addressed the concerns.
“We need to know the impact of what it’s having on the services executing missions beyond the war, the department notified us that the standard fuel price for the services has increased from $154 to $195 a barrel,” Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn., said Tuesday during a hearing on the Pentagon’s budget.
“That’s more we have to pay for fuel. Then there’s less money available for training and exercise that the services need to perform,” she added.
Scaling back training late in the summer as the fiscal year winds down is relatively routine inside the Pentagon. But officials say it is far less common to see such sweeping cuts and cancellations this early in the budget cycle.
President Donald Trump speaks to the press as he departs the White House, May 12, 2026 in Washington.(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump said Americans’ financial situation was “not even a little bit” of a motivating factor for him reaching a deal to end the war in Iran, despite a new report that inflation rose for a second consecutive month and hit a three-year high.
Trump made the comment on Tuesday as he took questions from reporters as he left the White House for a high-stakes trip to China.
“Not even a little bit,” the president said when asked to what extent Americans’ financial situations were motivating him to make a deal with Iran, as the war stretches into its 11th week.
“The only thing that matters when I’m talking about Iran, they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” Trump continued. “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation. I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing: we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon. That’s all.”
ABC News White House Correspondent Karen Travers pressed Trump to clarify whether he was considering the financial impact of the war on Americans. He doubled down.
“The most important thing, by far, is Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
“What about the pressure on Americans and prices, right now?” ABC’s Travers asked.
“Every American understands,” Trump said.
He added, “They understand that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. If Iran has a nuclear weapon, the whole world would be in trouble because they happen to be crazy.”
When pressed on his 2024 campaign promise to bring down inflation in light of Tuesday’s report showing prices rose 3.8% in April compared to last year, Trump insisted his policies are “working incredibly.”
A recent poll from ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos found about two-thirds of Americans (65%) disapproved of how Trump is handling the economy. About three-quarters of Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling the cost of living in the U.S. (76%) with just about a quarter approving (23%). Nearly as many disapprove of how he’s handling inflation (72%), up from 65% who disapproved in February.
Several of the poll’s participants spoke to ABC News about the financial strain they’re experiencing because of soaring gas prices.
As of Tuesday, the national average for a gallon of gas in the U.S. was $4.50, according to data from AAA, up more than $1.50 since the war began in late February.
Trump, who on Monday floated a gas tax holiday to bring some financial relief to Americans, reiterated on Tuesday his belief that prices will go back down once the conflict comes to an end.
“When it’s over, you’re going to have a massive drop in the price of oil,” Trump told reporters.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks during the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing titled “A Review of the President’s FY2027 Budget Request for the Department of Defense,” in Dirksen building on Tuesday, May 12, 2026. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said Tuesday he does not trust Pakistan and questioned the country’s role as a mediator in negotiations between the U.S. and Iran after a recent report suggested the Pakistanis are working closely with Iran.
“I don’t trust Pakistan as far as I can throw them,” Graham said during a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine.
On Monday, CBS News reported U.S. officials told the outlet that Pakistan had allowed Iranian military aircraft to be parked at its airfields, “potentially shielding them from American airstrikes.”
CBS reported the U.S. officials, who spoke only under condition of anonymity to discuss national security issues, said that days after President Donald Trump announced the ceasefire with Iran in early April, Tehran sent multiple aircraft to Pakistan Air Force Base Nur Khan.
Leaving the White House on Tuesday for his trip to China, Trump told reporters the Pakistanis have been “great.”
“The Pakistanis have been great, the field marshal and the prime minister of Pakistan have been great,” he said.
Graham first asked Caine if the report was accurate, but Caine would not comment, citing the classified nature of the intelligence. Graham then asked Caine if such a move would be inconsistent with Pakistan’s role as a mediator.
“I wouldn’t want to comment on that based on the ongoing negotiations impact and Pakistan’s role,” Caine responded.
Graham asked Hegseth the same question.
“Again, I wouldn’t want to get in the middle of these negotiations,” Hegseth responded.
“I want to get in the middle of these negotiations,” Graham replied. “I don’t trust Pakistan as far as I can throw them. If they actually do have Iranian aircraft parked in Pakistan bases to protect Iranian military assets, that tells me we should be looking maybe for somebody else to mediate.”
“No wonder this damn thing is going nowhere,” he added.
In a statement provided to ABC News, the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs “categorically rejected” the CBS News report, suggesting it was misleading and sensationalized. The statement confirmed that Iranian aircraft are in Pakistan but said American aircraft are also allowed to use its airfields.
“Following the ceasefire and during the initial round of the Islamabad Talks, a number of aircraft from Iran and the United States arrived in Pakistan to facilitate the movement of diplomatic personnel, security teams, and administrative staff associated with the talks process,” the statement said.
“Some aircraft and support personnel remained temporarily in Pakistan in anticipation of subsequent rounds of engagement,” the statement said.
The ministry added that the aircraft within its borders “arrived during the ceasefire period and bear no linkage whatsoever to any military contingency or preservation arrangement.”
The ministry defended Pakistan’s stance as an “impartial, constructive, and responsible facilitator in support of dialogue and de-escalation.”
“Assertions suggesting otherwise are speculative, misleading, and entirely detached from the factual context,” the statement said.
City of Arcadia, councilmember, Eileen Wang attends the Asian Hall of Fame 2023 induction ceremony, October 21, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Eileen Wang, the mayor of Arcadia, California, was charged with acting as an illegal foreign agent for China, the Justice Department announced on Monday.
Wang agreed to plead guilty, the DOJ said.
The City of Arcadia said Wang resigned from her position on Monday.
Starting in late 2020, Wang and Yaoning “Mike” Sun worked together to operate a website called U.S. News Center that “purported to be a news source for the local Chinese-American community.”
The Justice Department said in a plea agreement that Wang and Sun “received and executed directives from PRC (People’s Republic of China) government officials to post pro-PRC content on the website, and sometimes sought approval from PRC government officials to circulate other pro-PRC content.”
In one instance in November 2021, Wang wanted to circulate an article about the Chinese and Russian ambassador asking for Americans to respect the PRC’s “democratic rights.”
“This is what the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wants to send,” she said.
In her plea agreement she admitted to not notifying the attorney general that she was working for the PRC.
“Individuals elected to public office in the United States should act only for the people of the United States that they represent,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “It is deeply concerning that someone who previously received and executed directives from PRC government officials is now in a position of public trust at all, but particularly so because that relationship with that foreign government had never been disclosed.”
FBI Director Kash Patel holds a news conference at Department of Justice headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 27, 2026. (Photo by Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — FBI Director Kash Patel sparred with the Senate Appropriations Committee’s top Democrat over the director’s alleged questionable behavior when Patel appeared before the panel for a budget hearing on Tuesday.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen, the ranking member of the committee, addressed reports of Patel’s alleged misuse of FBI resources and a story in The Atlantic that alleged he has had “bouts of excessive drinking” and job performance issues.
“What we are learning about what’s happening at the FBI is anything but normal,” Van Hollen said. “Director Patel, as you ask for more taxpayer resources, we cannot look away from the credible, extremely troubling reports about your misconduct at the FBI.”
Patel said last month that he’s “never been intoxicated on the job,” following the report. Patel sued The Atlantic over the article, demanding $250 million in damages.
Van Hollen later grilled Patel on the report asking Patel if, per The Atlantic report, he had “episodes of excessive drinking.”
Patel shot back, calling the report a “total farce.”
In a heated exchange, Patel then claimed without evidence that Van Hollen was “slinging margaritas” just over a year ago with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the migrant who the government said in court was erroneously deported to El Salvador.
The moment is a reference to when Van Hollen traveled to El Salvador to meet with Abrego Garcia, who had been deported against a judge’s orders to the notorious CECOT prison. At the time, the senator said at one point during the meeting monitored by the El Salvador government, El Salvador officials put glasses on the table where they were meeting that appeared to have liquid inside with salt or sugar rims on top.
Van Hollen insisted that neither he nor Abrego Garcia touched those glasses and said it was clear they didn’t based on photos of the meeting taken by El Salvadoran officials.
Patel is appearing alongside other Department of Justice agency heads regarding the agencies’ 2027 budget requests. Patel is joined by Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole, United States Marshals Service Director Glady Serralta and Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Director Robert Cekada.
When Patel last testified on Capitol Hill in September 2025, he faced questions from Democrats about the assassination of conservative activist and influencer Charlie Kirk and his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
FBI Director Kash Patel holds a news conference at Department of Justice headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 27, 2026. (Photo by Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — FBI Director Kash Patel is set to be questioned by members of the Senate Appropriations Committee Tuesday afternoon amid several controversies involving the director.
Patel will testify alongside the other heads of the Department of Justice agencies such as the heads of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the United States Marshals Service and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
While it’s a hearing regarding the 2027 budget request, Patel is expected to face questions about a host of issues from the alleged misuse of FBI resources for travel to the story in The Atlantic that alleged he has had “bouts of excessive drinking” and job performance issues.
Patel said last month that he’s “never been intoxicated on the job,” following the report. Patel sued The Atlantic over the article, demanding $250 million in damages.
Asked about the article during an unrelated press conference last month, Patel railed against negative media coverage.
“I can say unequivocally that I never listen to the fake news mafia and when they get louder, it just means I’m doing my job,” Patel said.
In February, Patel joined in on Team USA hockey’s locker room celebrations in Italy shortly after the team won the gold medal — a move that drew scrutiny about his use of FBI resources to attend.
Patel, a hockey fan, was said to have had meetings in Italy prior to attending the game. Ben Williamson, an FBI spokesperson, said on social media that Patel’s trip had been previously scheduled. He added that “any other personal expenses would be reimbursed.”
During the hearing, Patel is also expected to tout his successes at the FBI.
“Whether it’s rebuilding our entire backbone infrastructure, caring more for our workforce, actioning the business side of the house, eliminating bureaucracy, integrating AI, procuring equipment, developing new private sector partnerships – we have delivered the changes you have been requesting for years… and we did it in just over 1 year,” Patel said in a message to the FBI last week. “Together, these reforms have truly transformed this FBI into the premier modern-day law enforcement organization we need to be.”
When Patel last testified on Capitol Hill in September 2025, he sparred with Democrats as he faced questions about the assassination of conservative activist and influencer Charlie Kirk and his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
(WASHINGTON) — Virginia Democrats are asking the United States Supreme Court to override a decision by the state’s highest court last week that struck down a voter-approved redistricting ballot measure ahead of the midterm elections.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Sen. Mark Kelly walks past Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine before the start of a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, April 30, 2026. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Pentagon will review whether Sen. Mark Kelly improperly disclosed classified information when the Arizona Democrat and retired Navy captain raised concerns about the strain the war with Iran has placed on U.S. weapons stockpiles.
Hegseth, in a social media post Sunday evening, blasted Kelly for “blabbing on TV” after the senator appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that morning and discussed strains on the Pentagon’s ammunition inventory.
“‘Captain’ Mark Kelly strikes again,” Hegseth posted. “Now he’s blabbing on TV (falsely & dumbly) about a *CLASSIFIED* Pentagon briefing he received. Did he violate his oath … again? @DeptofWar legal counsel will review.”
During the CBS interview, Kelly pointed to recent open-door Pentagon briefings to Congress, which he says outlined that U.S. stockpiles of key munitions, including Tomahawk and ATACMS missiles, are being rapidly depleted amid the war with Iran.
A Pentagon review of Kelly’s comments would mark the second time Hegseth has sought to punish him, the first being after Kelly and several other Democratic military and intelligence service veterans posted a video advising U.S. troops to not follow illegal orders. Hegseth sought to demote Kelly, which would reduce his military pension.
A three-judge panel in the U.S. Court of Appeals expressed skepticism over Hegseth’s effort to punish Kelly over the comments during oral arguments last week.
The Pentagon says it has hit some 13,000 targets in the war with Iran. In some cases, those targets may need to be hit several times, it said. Acting Pentagon Comptroller Jules Hurst III told lawmakers in late April that the war had cost at least $25 billion to that point, noting that much of that was for munitions use.
“It’s shocking how deep we’ve gone into these magazines,” Kelly said.
Following Hegseth’s threat, Kelly responded on social media, showing a clip from last week’s Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in which Hegseth is shown saying it would take years to replenish stockpiles to pre-war levels.
“We had this conversation in a public hearing a week ago and you said it would take ‘years’ to replenish some of these stockpiles,” Kelly said. “That’s not classified, it’s a quote from you.”
An analysis from the Center for Strategic and International Studies found that the U.S. has used half of its inventory of munitions fighting Iran, and that it could take up to four years for the pre-war stock to be rearmed.
The Pentagon briefs members of Congress on classified materials behind closed doors, but it’s unclear whether Kelly violated any disclosure laws, as he did not get into specifics on the volume of weapons used or remaining in the CBS interview.
Hegseth has insisted the U.S. has sufficient ammunition to sustain fighting against Iran, though much of the anxiety inside defense circles is centered less on Tehran and more on the Pentagon’s ability to respond to another major conflict.
“That means the American people are less safe. Whether it’s a conflict with China or somewhere else in the world, the munitions are depleted,” Kelly said on CBS.
The Pentagon had already been grappling with mounting concerns over its weapon stockpiles and how quickly industry can replenish munitions, with the war with Iran dramatically exacerbating those concerns.
Those concerns come as the Pentagon pushes for a historic $1.5 trillion defense budget next year, roughly a 50% increase over current spending levels, with a significant share earmarked for munitions production and cheaper, mass-produced drone systems. But the spending plan was largely finalized before the war started and does not fully account for the strain the war is placing on U.S. inventories.
(WASHINGTON) — Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has temporarily extended an order that maintains nationwide access to the abortion pill mifepristone by mail and through telehealth visits.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
