Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed a trilateral summit with United States President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss ending the Ukraine war, amid concerns that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could be excluded from the negotiations.
The proposed meeting, which could take place in China next month on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, has been discussed by the three countries, although no final agreement has been reached on the meeting or its agenda.
According to Reuters, which cited a report by The Wall Street Journal, Putin made the proposal during a telephone conversation with Trump on October 9.
The Kremlin has suggested holding the meeting during the APEC summit scheduled for November 18 and 19 in Shenzhen, China.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the possibility had been discussed but stressed that the arrangement remained preliminary.
“There is no clear understanding yet regarding the meeting itself or its potential agenda, although all three parties acknowledge the hypothetical possibility of such a meeting taking place,” Peskov said, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Trump has expressed openness to the proposal, although reports indicate that he has not formally committed to attending the summit.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump said he was willing to meet Putin and Xi, but indicated that nuclear arms control and denuclearisation would be the principal focus rather than the Ukraine conflict.
“We would have it to talk about nuclear weapons and denuclearisation,” Trump said, according to Euronews.
He nevertheless indicated that he would continue seeking an end to the war, saying he would do what he could to bring the conflict to a close.
The proposed summit comes amid renewed diplomatic manoeuvres involving Washington and Moscow, including a reported arrangement concerning Russian diesel supplies to the United States and a US executive order waiving certain sanctions on Russia.
These developments have attracted criticism from Kyiv, with Ukrainian officials warning that concessions to Moscow could weaken pressure on Putin to end the war.
The prospect of a meeting involving Trump, Putin and Xi without Zelenskyy’s participation has triggered objections from Ukraine, which maintains that it must be directly involved in decisions concerning its territory and security.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha criticised the proposed format, arguing that a meeting between the American, Russian and Chinese leaders could undermine rather than advance peace efforts.
“A trilateral meeting between the leaders of Ukraine, the US, and Russia could help end the war sooner. A trilateral meeting between the leaders of Russia, China, and the US would do only the opposite: encourage Putin to continue this war,” Sybiha wrote on X.
The Ukrainian government has repeatedly insisted that any meaningful negotiations must include Kyiv, warning against arrangements that could determine Ukraine’s future without its participation.
The proposed summit also raises questions about China’s potential role in efforts to resolve the conflict, given Beijing’s diplomatic and economic relationship with Moscow and its position as a major global power.
While the meeting could provide an opportunity for discussions among three of the world’s most influential leaders, the absence of Ukraine would complicate any attempt to negotiate a settlement acceptable to Kyiv.
The proposal remains at an early stage, with no confirmed agreement on the participants, agenda or terms of a possible meeting.
For now, it remains uncertain whether the proposed summit will take place or whether it will produce concrete progress towards ending the war, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
