# Slotkin presses Trump on China's role in Jordan base attack

> Democratic senator urges president to confront Xi over satellite imagery that may have enabled Iranian strike killing three U.S. troops.
- Title: Slotkin presses Trump on China's role in Jordan base attack
- Summary: Democratic senator urges president to confront Xi over satellite imagery that may have enabled Iranian strike killing three U.S. troops. Senator Elissa…
- Keywords: breaking, elissa slotkin, donald trump, xi jinping, iran, china, jordan, muwaffaq salti air base, satellite imagery, u.s. military, news, Slotkin
- Source: CBS News — https://cbsnews.com/news/slotkin-xi-trump-iran-chinese-satellite-images-u-s-base-attack
- Author: Kathryn  Watson
- Published: 2026-09-18T15:32:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: breaking, elissa slotkin, donald trump, xi jinping, iran, china, jordan, muwaffaq salti air base, satellite imagery, u.s. military, news
## Senator demands Trump confront Xi
Democratic Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan has urged President Trump to press Chinese President Xi Jinping on evidence that Iran used Chinese satellite images to attack a U.S. military base in Jordan.
## July attack killed three American troops
In July, Iranian missiles and drones struck the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in northeast Jordan. The attacks killed nineteen-year-old Private Isabella Gonzales, twenty-five-year-old First Lieutenant Tyler James Feehan and twenty-eight-year-old Sergeant Angel S. Rampersad.
## China sanctioned for satellite support
In May, the Trump administration sanctioned three Chinese satellite companies for providing imagery that enables Iran's military strikes against U.S. forces: Meentropy Technology, The Earth Eye and Chang Guang Satellite Technology.
## Trump dismisses spying concerns
When asked last Sunday whether he would raise the issue with Xi, Trump said of the Chinese leader, "I think he's behaved reasonably well." He added that China spies on America just as America spies on China.

> I think he's behaved reasonably well, and we behave reasonably well.
## Slotkin criticizes Trump's approach
Slotkin wrote that Trump's "insistence on rolling out the red carpet for our adversaries" is troubling, and urged him to make clear to Xi that Chinese support for Iran "must stop immediately and that there will be consequences China will face if it fails to act."

> this support must stop immediately, and that there will be consequences China will face if it fails to act.
## White House dismisses Iran threat
A senior administration official responded that Iran has been decimated and that outside actors helping Iran are not increasing their ability to target Americans, contradicting Slotkin's assertion that Chinese satellite imagery directly contributed to American deaths.
## Key takeaway

Senator Elissa Slotkin is urging President Trump to press Chinese President Xi Jinping over evidence that Iran used Chinese satellite images to carry out a July attack on a U.S. military base in Jordan that killed three American service members.