WASHINGTON: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping will hold the first-ever three-way meeting between the leaders of the United States, Russia and China at a summit in Shenzhen next week, the White House said Friday (Nov 13).
Trump wants to talk about reducing nuclear arsenals at the trilateral talks on Thursday and is also set to bring up his war in Iran – but he is not expected to discuss Russia’s war in Ukraine, US officials said.
The three leaders will meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in the southern Chinese city, White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales told reporters.
“The president has made it clear that, among other topics, he will discuss the reduction of nuclear weapons in the world. This proliferation, President Trump believes, is very dangerous,” Wales said.
One of the major conflicts dominating Trump’s second term as president will feature, but the other will not, the US officials said.
“I think the president does intend to talk about Iran in the trilateral meeting with Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin,” a senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters on a call.
Washington has a “whole other track” of negotiations with Kyiv and Moscow aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, the official added, referring to talks that US envoys have had in recent days with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“China is not really a part of that track, so it doesn’t seem appropriate to have the Ukraine discussion there,” the official added.
Tesla and SpaceX boss Elon Musk will accompany Trump on his trip to China but won’t be involved in the meeting with Xi and Putin, the officials said.
Trump will also hold a bilateral working lunch and meeting with the Chinese president on Thursday – their fourth meeting since the US president’s return to power last year.
