Putin proposes Ukraine summit with Trump and Xi, but Trump has not agreed
Vladimir Putin has proposed meeting Donald Trump and Xi Jinping next month to discuss ending the war in Ukraine on terms favourable to Moscow, according to the Wall Street Journal, cited by Reuters. The Kremlin says discussions are under way but no meeting or agenda has been agreed; a senior US official told the Journal that Trump has not committed. Moscow proposed talks alongside the APEC summit in Shenzhen on 18–19 November.
Bottom line — The proposed talks would exclude Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Trump’s participation remains uncertain.
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The Journal reported that Putin raised the idea during a 9 October phone call with Trump.
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That call also produced an arrangement for the US to buy Russian diesel and help sell it on global markets, according to the Journal.
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The Kremlin confirmed the possibility of a meeting; Putin later said it depended largely on China as host, TASS reported.
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The Journal reported that Chinese officials would not oppose the meeting if Trump agreed.
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An unnamed former Russian intelligence officer told the Journal that Putin envisaged the format as a second Yalta summit, dividing the world into spheres of influence.
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Anadolu Agency reported that some Chinese officials feared the proposed meeting could distract from Beijing’s plans for the APEC summit.