Trump, Xi and Putin to hold first three-way summit in China
Leaders of the United States, China and Russia are set to hold an unprecedented three-way meeting next week on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Shenzhen, China's tech hub.
US President Donald Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin will meet in Shenzhen, with the White House assistant press secretary confirming the unprecedented gathering. The talks occur nine months after the last nuclear arms treaty between Washington and Moscow expired, leaving the world's two countries with the largest atomic arsenals without caps for the first time in more than 50 years.
Nuclear concerns
Trump has framed the meeting as an opportunity for all three countries to reach a deal on nuclear stockpiles. The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) lapsed in February, after which Trump rejected Russia's proposal to extend it for another year and demanded a "new, improved and modernized" deal that includes China.
Regional tensions
Trump plans to discuss the Iran war with Xi and Putin but will avoid Russia's war in Ukraine, according to a senior US official. Elon Musk will travel with Trump to China but won't attend the meeting, and Trump isn't expected to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during the Asia trip.
The summit has drawn comparisons to the 1945 Yalta Conference, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the parallel, saying any agreements reached in Shenzhen cannot be imposed on others. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed concern that the meeting could become a platform to discuss a Ukraine deal behind Kyiv's back.
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