Beijing confirms talks on a possible Xi–Trump–Putin meeting at APEC in Shenzhen
China’s foreign ministry says it is “in communication with relevant parties” about a three-leader meeting that could take place on the sidelines of this month’s APEC summit; experts expect Moscow to use it to push its line on Ukraine.
China has confirmed it is discussing a possible meeting between Xi Jinping, US President Donald Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, The Guardian reported on Saturday, 7 November.
What Beijing said
Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a briefing this week that China “is in communication with relevant parties regarding a meeting between the three heads of state”. It could take place on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Shenzhen later this month. No date or agenda has been announced.
How experts read it
- Sun Yun, director of the China programme at the Stimson Center, said Russia would probably use such a summit to nudge China and the US closer to Moscow’s positions on Ukraine.
- Danny Russel, a former senior State Department official now at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said Trump’s advisers have warned him to steer clear of Ukraine as a topic.
Context
The news comes days before Russia–Ukraine–US talks in Abu Dhabi on 10–11 November, the first trilateral round since February. Reuters noted that expectations of a possible Putin–Trump–Xi meeting have been one of the geopolitical factors supporting the ruble since early October. Kyiv has repeatedly insisted that no deal on Ukraine should be made without Ukraine.
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