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US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to hold a trilateral summit in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen on November 19, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) annual summit.
The meeting, involving the leaders of the world’s three major powers, is expected to focus on a proposAed nuclear arms control agreement, as well as developments in North Korea and Iran, according to a report published by The New York Times.
Trump had earlier publicly expressed his intention to meet Putin and Xi. Speaking to reporters earlier this week, he said they would discuss nuclear disarmament and several other issues.
White House spokesperson Olivia Wells described the planned gathering as a “historic” meeting during a briefing in Washington on Friday.
“The president has made clear that, among other issues, he wants to discuss reducing nuclear weapons around the world. President Trump believes the proliferation of nuclear weapons is extremely dangerous,” she told reporters.
A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity to the Associated Press and Reuters, said no agreement was expected to be signed following the talks.
Iran is also likely to feature in the discussions, while Ukraine is not expected to be on the agenda. Moscow and Beijing have yet to comment on the reported meeting.
Wells said Trump would arrive in Shenzhen late Wednesday to attend the two-day APEC summit, which brings together 21 member economies. He is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with Xi on Thursday. It would be their fourth meeting since Trump returned to the White House in 2025.
“President Trump will conclude his trip to China with a trilateral meeting involving the leaders of the United States, the People’s Republic of China and Russia,” Wells said.
As part of his regional tour, Trump is also scheduled to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in the Philippines on Tuesday.
Wells said the visit would deliver historic achievements for the American people and advance US interests in the Indo-Pacific region.
The planned summit comes amid growing concerns over the future of global nuclear arms control. The nuclear arms control treaty between the United States and Russia expired in February, leaving the world’s two largest nuclear arsenals without a major bilateral agreement imposing limits on them.
The expiry effectively ended decades of arms control cooperation that had helped reduce nuclear tensions following the Cold War.
The United Nations has urged both countries to reach a new agreement without delay. Trump, however, has said he wants a more comprehensive deal that would also include China, arguing that Beijing is expanding its nuclear arsenal.
Sources: Reuters, BBC
