Kremlin: Putin and Trump discussed trilateral meeting with Xi at APEC summit

The Kremlin confirmed that during a phone call on Tuesday, September 8, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump discussed the possibility of holding a trilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Shenzhen in November of this year.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed this at a briefing on Wednesday while answering questions from journalists, including AFP. Asked whether the leaders had discussed a trilateral meeting in Shenzhen, Peskov replied unequivocally: “Absolutely.”

“Such a potential possibility has been mentioned before, and such an opportunity will present itself,” Peskov added.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit is scheduled for November 18–19 in Shenzhen. Russia has confirmed Putin’s participation, while the White House has not yet announced whether Trump will attend. No final decision on holding a trilateral meeting has been made, and no specific agenda has been announced.

At the same briefing, Peskov indicated that Moscow expects trilateral talks involving the United States and Ukraine to resume “in the foreseeable future.”

“We would not want to — and will not — publicly discuss any specific details, especially since at this point there are no, shall we say, formalized, comprehensive programs or road maps. There is a general initiative and a general political will — confirmed — to resume trilateral negotiations,” Peskov said, as quoted by Kyiv Post.

The last round of trilateral talks involving Ukraine, Russia, and the United States took place on February 17–18 in Geneva, following previous meetings in Abu Dhabi on February 4–5. Last week, American envoys visited Moscow and Kyiv, but no breakthrough was announced.

The idea of a trilateral meeting on the sidelines of APEC was previously put forward by Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, who stated that all three leaders are expected to attend the forum, according to Shafaq News.

In addition, Peskov said that the deterioration of Ukraine’s economic situation had forced Kyiv to show greater “flexibility,” but that this, in his words, is still insufficient for a resolution of the conflict. He also said that Russia continues to work on prisoner exchanges with Ukraine and welcomes the peacemaking efforts of both the United States and India.