Russian President Vladimir Putin wants Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump at the same table next month to settle the war in Ukraine, according to a report Sunday citing people familiar with the discussions.
The idea surfaced in an October 9 call between Putin and Trump, a former Russian intelligence officer familiar with the matter said. That call also produced a deal for Washington to purchase Russian diesel. The Kremlin has suggested a venue, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, which China hosts November 18 and 19.
Ukraine’s government would have no seat at the table, and the talks would aim for terms favorable to Moscow, the report says.
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Trump has not agreed, a senior American official said, but might respond favorably. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed talks are underway but said officials have “no clear understanding yet” of the meeting or its agenda. The White House and the Chinese embassy in Washington had not responded to requests for comment.
Beijing has stayed publicly quiet. On October 3, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun welcomed Putin’s plans to attend the Shenzhen summit but said, “I have no information to offer at the moment” on a trilateral meeting. Chinese officials reportedly would not object to Trump joining but worry the meeting could eclipse the summit they host.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said October 14 that Putin will travel to Shenzhen and that Moscow looks forward to talking with Xi. The Kremlin said in September that Putin and Trump had already discussed a three-way meeting with Xi there. Trump’s attendance, as of this writing, remains unconfirmed.
Trump signed an order Friday waiving sanctions and tariffs that a Russia sanctions law he signed in September would have imposed Sunday, the day the report appeared, including levies reaching 500% on Russian goods. The White House says enforcing the law now would undercut peace negotiations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the move “definitely helps only the Russians.” Republican Rep. Michael McCaul said loosening restrictions would help finance the Kremlin’s war effort.
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