Ukraine warns proposed Putin-Trump-Xi summit could encourage Russia to continue war
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha says talks about ending the war should include Ukraine. The proposed three-way meeting has no confirmed date or agenda.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on October 19 that a proposed summit involving the US, Russian and Chinese presidents would encourage Vladimir Putin to continue the war in Ukraine. His objection came as reports described a possible meeting with Donald Trump and Xi Jinping that would leave Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy out of talks about ending the conflict.
A meeting between the leaders of Ukraine, the US and Russia could help end the war sooner, Sybiha said on X, according to The Kyiv Independent. He said a meeting of Russia, China and the US would have the opposite effect: it would ‘encourage Putin to continue this war.’ His comments set out Kyiv’s preferred format for talks while the reported alternative remains unsettled.
What is known about the proposed summit
The Wall Street Journal reported that Putin raised the idea of a meeting with Trump and Xi during an October 9 phone call with Trump, according to CNBC. CNBC said the Journal cited a former Russian intelligence officer briefed on the matter. The proposed format would exclude Zelenskyy from negotiations about Ukraine’s war, the Journal reported, as relayed by The Kyiv Independent.
The meeting could be held alongside the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit scheduled for November 18 and 19 in Shenzhen, China, according to the Journal’s reporting as described by Hindustan Times. That is a possible venue and timing for the proposal, not an agreed summit date.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told the Journal that discussions about a meeting were taking place but that there was no clear understanding of whether it would happen or what its agenda might be, according to The Kyiv Independent. Hindustan Times, also citing the Journal, reported that a senior US official said Trump had not agreed to attend. Those accounts leave the proposed gathering without a confirmed agreement or agenda.
Washington’s response to the meeting proposal
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there had been talks of a meeting but that he did not know whether one had been finalized, CNBC reported, citing comments carried by Reuters. Rubio said Trump was open to opportunities to help end the war. His remarks acknowledged discussions without announcing a meeting or endorsing the proposed three-leader format.
Kyiv’s objection concerns who would take part in talks about its future. The reported proposal puts Putin, Trump and Xi at the table without Zelenskyy; Sybiha’s alternative puts Ukraine alongside the US and Russia. Hindustan Times reported that the proposed format would also leave European leaders outside the discussions.
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Sources and context
- US-Russia-China summit would only 'encourage Putin to continue this war,' Ukraine saysThe Kyiv Independent
- Putin reportedly proposes three-way summit with Trump and Xi on Ukraine war — without ZelenskyyCNBC, reporting attributed to The Wall Street Journal
- Putin proposes trilateral meeting with Trump, Xi Jinping to discuss Ukraine war next monthHindustan Times, reporting attributed to The Wall Street Journal
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.