Washington, October 20 — US President Donald Trump on Monday signalled he is ready to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in China next month, raising the prospect of a rare three-way summit of the world's three biggest nuclear powers. The meeting could take place on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders' summit scheduled for November 18–19 in Shenzhen.

Trump made clear his condition: the talks should be about nuclear weapons, not Russia's war in Ukraine. 'I would do it, not so much for Ukraine — we would have it to talk about denuclearization,' he told reporters. He added that he would do whatever he could to help end the war, but resisted making Ukraine the centre of the meeting. The proposal was first raised by Putin during an October 9 phone call with Trump, according to Wall Street Journal reporting cited by multiple outlets.

Moscow played down expectations. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a hypothetical trilateral meeting 'has been mentioned' given that all three leaders may attend APEC, but stressed that no substantive proposals or agreements about the meeting or its agenda have been discussed. Peskov also said a final settlement of the Ukraine conflict is impossible without participation from Kyiv. China's foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said she had no information about a possible meeting.

Ukraine reacted sharply to the idea of the three leaders meeting without it. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga criticised the suggestion, saying a trilateral meeting without Kyiv would encourage Putin to continue the war. No formal agreement for the summit has been announced by any of the three governments. Sources: Wall Street Journal reporting via Sweden Herald (AP/TT) and Dim Sum Daily; Nation Press; Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov's statements as reported.