Trump says ready to meet Xi, Putin on sidelines of APEC summit: What’s on the agenda? | Today’s news
US President Donald Trump expressed his willingness to meet with his Chinese and Russian counterparts Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin on Monday (local time), but stressed that the meeting would focus on denuclearization efforts rather than ending the Ukraine war.
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Trump’s proposed meeting with Xi, Putin: What’s on the agenda
Trump told reporters, “I would do it — not so much for Ukraine, because Russia, frankly, was fine with Ukraine,” adding, “We would have it to talk about nuclear weapons and denuclearization. We would schedule a meeting based on denuclearization, and that’s a very positive thing for the world,” Bloomberg reported.
While there is no final confirmation of such a meeting, Trump has hinted that it could take place in Beijing during his planned November visit to China for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit and side talks with Xi Jinping.
He told reporters: “If they wanted to have it, I think it would be held in China. He just left here,” referring to Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Washington. “If President Xi wants to have it, I would have it. I’m sure we’re talking about other things like trade, but yes, I would.”
There is no official confirmation of the proposed meeting agenda either. However, when asked if he would discuss Ukraine at the summit, Trump said he would do “whatever I can do to end the war,” according to AFP.
Putin proposes trilateral meeting with Trump, Si: Here’s what the Kremlin said
The US president’s comments came a day after The Wall Street Journal reported that Putin had proposed a three-way meeting with Trump and Xi Jinping in November to discuss the Ukraine war and negotiate an end favorable to Moscow.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Given that all three heads of state could potentially attend the summit in China, the topic of such a hypothetical meeting was indeed mentioned.”
Read also | Trump’s ‘dealmaker’ image faces scrutiny as wars in Iran and Ukraine test his mettle
Peskov added: “Nobody discussed or made any substantial proposals or agreements, neither regarding the meeting itself nor its potential program and content.”
Putin reportedly made the suggestion during a phone call with Trump on October 9. A potential trilateral meeting between Putin, Trump and Xi Jinping in China would mark a major step for the Chinese president amid his ongoing efforts to elevate Beijing’s role as a diplomatic power broker.
While sources told The Wall Street Journal that Russian officials had proposed the idea to China through diplomatic channels and that Beijing had indicated its willingness provided the US president was on board, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said she had no information about a possible meeting.
The remarks come as Trump has recently softened his tone toward Putin and moved toward harsher criticism of Ukraine.
Trump is softening his stance on Putin and intensifying his criticism of Ukraine
During the same phone call in which Putin reportedly raised the idea of a trilateral meeting, the US president discussed supplying Russian diesel to the US and subsequently announced the deal. In a Truth Social post, Trump said Russia had agreed to deliver 300,000 tons of diesel to the U.S. immediately, followed by another 500,000 tons in November and another million tons “immediately thereafter.”
Read also | ‘It’s a deal for the rest of the world’: Trump defends Russian diesel supplies
A week later, he further softened his stance on Russia when he announced the waiver of Russia-related sanctions under the Lindsey O. Graham Russia-Iran Sanctions Act of 2026, citing national interests.
Amidst this, the US president has stepped up his criticism of Ukraine and its leader Volodymyr Zelensky, accusing him of not doing enough to end the war as Kiev targets Moscow’s energy infrastructure. In recent weeks, Trump has called on Ukrainians to name a new president and accused Zelensky of using money from Europe and former President Joe Biden to continue his war effort.
The meeting remains unconfirmed and it remains to be seen whether Xi will back the proposal amid concerns about growing bonhomie between China, Russia and the US.
