President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is open to a three-way meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin focused on nuclear weapons, raising the prospect of an unprecedented joint session on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen on 18–19 November.
What Trump said
Speaking to reporters outside the White House, Trump said the session would center on “nuclear weapons and denuclearization.” He added that he would attend if Xi wanted the meeting and that trade would likely be discussed as well. Trump said the United States holds the largest nuclear arsenal, with Russia second and China “third, but catching up,” and suggested Beijing might need about five years to narrow the gap.
The comments follow a Wall Street Journal report that Putin proposed using an APEC-side meeting to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine on terms favorable to Moscow, an idea floated during an 9 October phone call with Trump that also produced a U.S.–Russia diesel deal. Trump has separately waived some sanctions on Moscow in recent days as he tries to stabilize relations with both Beijing and Moscow.
What Moscow and Beijing have confirmed
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday that because all three presidents might attend APEC, “the topic of such a hypothetical meeting has indeed been mentioned.” He stressed that no concrete proposals on timing, agenda or outcomes had been agreed. China’s foreign ministry said it had no information to share about a trilateral session when asked on Monday.
Last week Beijing repeated its long-standing position that China’s nuclear force is far smaller than those of Washington and Moscow and that trilateral disarmament talks at this stage would be unfair. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha of Ukraine said a Russia–China–U.S. meeting without Kyiv would only encourage Putin to continue the war, while Peskov countered that any final settlement would still require a Ukrainian party willing to take responsibility.
Why the calendar matters
Trump has already committed to the Shenzhen APEC leaders’ week, which would mark his second China visit this year and another face-to-face with Xi. A trilateral nuclear conversation would land as the 2010 New START limits remain in place only through a voluntary extension agreed by Putin and former President Joe Biden, with broader Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty structures already expired.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, traveling in Uzbekistan, told reporters he did not know whether anything had been finalized but reiterated Trump’s desire to end the Ukraine war. Trump separately played down prospects for a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the same summit, saying he was unsure anyone was requesting one despite his earlier hope for talks this year.
What comes next
Diplomats in Europe and the Indo-Pacific will watch whether Beijing issues an invitation with a written arms-control agenda or keeps the idea at the level of corridor speculation. Ukrainian officials are pressing for any peace process to include Kyiv from the start, while U.S. allies worry about side deals that bypass NATO and partner capitals. For now, the only fixed date is the APEC host week itself — and Trump’s public willingness to sit down with both rivals in the same room.