U.S., Russia, and China discuss first-ever Trump–Putin–Xi summit
The U.S., Russia, and China are discussing a possible three-way meeting between Presidents Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Xi Jinping, the Financial Times reports.
Although Trump, Putin, and Xi have participated in separate meetings, the three presidents have not previously convened for a joint diplomatic discussion, according to Reuters. Putin proposed such a meeting in an October 9 phone call with Trump, wanting to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal reported on October 18.
Trump said on October 19 that he was open to it. "We would have it to talk about nuclear weapons and denuclearization," he said. "I'm sure we'd talk about other things like trade too."
China has been less enthusiastic. Its foreign ministry noted in October that it would be "neither fair, reasonable nor realistic" to ask China to join three-way nuclear disarmament talks at this stage.
For markets, the focuses are sanctions on Russia, energy supply dynamics, and U.S.-China trade. The Trump administration already took steps to improve relations with Moscow in October, including an agreement involving Russian diesel supplies and a decision to suspend certain sanctions measures.
As the U.S. midterm elections commence, pressure on Trump to ease both conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine is mounting, with diesel prices averaging $6.29 per gallon and regular gasoline averaging $4.15.
The meeting has been floated for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen, China, on November 18–19. Trump is scheduled to participate in gathering, which would bring him to China for the second time in 2026.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Financial Times on November 3 that preparations for the meeting were underway. However, China has not confirmed a trilateral summit, and it remains unclear whether officials are coordinating a joint meeting or separate bilateral talks.
Sources & Further Reading
- "US, Russia and China discuss trilateral meeting between Trump, Putin and Xi." Financial Times. November 3, 2026.
- "Trump open to idea of joint meeting with Xi, Putin next month." Reuters. October 19, 2026.
- "Putin Floats a Summit With Trump and Xi to Discuss Ukraine Deal". WSJ. October 19, 2026.
- "Trump says Russia to supply diesel to US and global markets." Reuters. October 9, 2026.
- "AAA Fuel Prices." AAA. November 3, 2026.
This article was drafted with the help of AI. Reid Robertson fact-checked, edited and published the article and is responsible for its accuracy and quality. How we use AI
