- Putin has proposed a trilateral summit between the U.S., China and Russia in November to discuss ways to end the war in Ukraine.
- With the Trump administration having reached a diesel export agreement with Russia and delayed new sanctions, the U.S. said it may review the summit proposal.
- The report said a diplomatic backlash is likely if sanctions relief and talks on ending the war proceed while Ukraine is left out.
Forecast Trend Report by Period
Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed a three-way summit with U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss ways to end the war in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported.
Citing The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg said on October 18 that Putin made the proposal during a phone call with Trump on October 9. A former Russian intelligence official briefed on the matter said the call also produced an agreement on U.S. purchases of Russian diesel fuel and support for its international sales.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the possibility of a meeting among the three leaders had been discussed. No final agreement has been reached on whether the summit will take place or what it would cover, he added.
The U.S. also has yet to decide whether to participate. A senior U.S. administration official said Trump had not agreed to the meeting but could review the proposal because he has pushed to end the war in Ukraine. One of the venues Putin suggested was the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China, on November 18-19.
The proposal comes as the Trump administration has reached an agreement with Russia on diesel exports and delayed new sanctions. Trump said the move was meant to keep Russia from walking away from peace talks, but Ukraine, European allies and U.S. political circles have criticized the easing of sanctions on Russia.
The prospect of the U.S., China and Russia discussing an end to the war without Ukraine is likely to stir diplomatic controversy. In an interview with Bloomberg on October 18, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Trump was pressuring Ukraine to surrender to Russia and objected to Washington’s approach to the negotiations.
