Talks underway for Trump-Xi-Putin meeting, China says

Beijing is engaged in discussions with Moscow and Washington to prepare a potential trilateral meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping, U.S. President Donald Trump, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson. The meeting is expected to occur during the APEC summit hosted by China in Shenzhen on November 18-19, with the three leaders anticipated to attend.

Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, informed reporters that China is in communication with the relevant parties regarding the meeting, but did not provide further details on the agenda, as concerns persist in Europe about the possibility of Ukraine and European capitals being absent from the discussions. Trump previously expressed interest in discussing "denuclearization" during a trilateral meeting, but did not prioritize addressing Ukraine.

Chinese President Xi reportedly rejected the idea of discussing Ukraine in that format during his recent conversation with Xi. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that such a meeting would be "appropriate and very useful," but did not disclose a potential agenda. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed apprehension about a trilateral meeting, fearing it might resemble the 1945 Yalta Conference, where the distribution of influence was renegotiated.

Zelenskyy emphasized that Europe must and wants to play a role in resolving key elements of a peaceful solution, such as sanctions and security architecture, which can only be achieved with European involvement. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz echoed these sentiments alongside Zelenskyy in Berlin, stating that crucial aspects of a peaceful resolution - whether related to sanctions or the security framework - can only be determined with the participation of Europeans, a point both parties recognize.