Ukraine war, Putin proposes summit with Trump and Xi to end the conflict

The initiative, still without the definitive green light from the United States, could take shape on the sidelines of the Apec summit in China. A possible meeting without Zelensky worries Kiev and the Western allies

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed a trilateral meeting, to be held in November, with American President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to discuss the war in Ukraine and the conditions for its conclusion. The Wall Street Journal reports it, citing sources familiar with the dossier. The plan is part of the rapprochement between Moscow and Washington, a development that has raised fears in Ukraine and its Western allies. Such a summit, without Volodymyr Zelensky, would be unprecedented and a wake-up call in European capitals and beyond.

The Kremlin's proposal

According to what was reported by the US newspaper, Putin put forward the idea during a phone call with Trump on 9 October. During the same conversation, an agreement would also have been reached that provides for the purchase by the United States of Russian diesel, while at the same time facilitating its sale on the global market. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that discussions about a possible meeting were underway. “There is still no clear vision on the meeting itself or its potential agenda items, although all three parties recognize the possibility that such a meeting could take place,” he told the WSJ.

The American response

A senior US official said that Trump has not yet given his approval to the proposal. However, according to the same source, the American president could be open to the idea, given his desire to keep his electoral promise to end the conflict. Trump had said the war would end "on day one" of his new term. According to sources informed of the negotiations, the Kremlin has suggested holding the trilateral dialogue on the sidelines of the next Apec summit, scheduled for 18 and 19 November in Shenzhen, a technological hub in southern China.

The Chinese response

According to analysts, for Beijing to host a summit of this level would represent an important opportunity to strengthen its role as a leading diplomatic mediator. Russian officials have put the proposal forward to Beijing through diplomatic channels: the Chinese side has made it known that it would not oppose it, as long as Trump agrees, other people say. “China wants to be seen as the linchpin between the great powers and, potentially, as a mediator between the United States and Russia,” observed Yun Sun, head of the China program at the Stimson Center, a Washington think tank. In the past, Putin has already proposed a trilateral to both Trump and Xi. Unlike in the past, this proposal comes at a stage in which the fate of relations between Moscow and Washington has undergone a turnaround.