Trump, Putin and Xi to meet in China, nuclear arms reduction on agenda, White House says

New Delhi: The United States president, Donald Trump; the Russian president, Vladimir Putin; and the Chinese president, Xi Jinping; will discuss nuclear weapons reduction at a trilateral meeting in China next week, the White House said. The talks will bring together the leaders of three of the world’s biggest nuclear powers, with no nuclear arms control agreement in place between Washington and Moscow.

The White House said on Friday that the meeting would take place on Thursday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen. The White House spokesperson, Olivia Wales, said nuclear weapons reduction would be among the key subjects.

“The president has made it clear that, among other topics, he will discuss the reduction of nuclear weapons in the world, whose proliferation president Trump believes is very dangerous,” Wales told reporters.

The announcement follows Trump’s statement earlier this week that he expected to meet Putin and Xi during his China visit. Speaking to reporters before returning to Washington from Florida, Trump said the discussions could cover denuclearization and efforts to end the war in Iran.

Nuclear arms treaty

The nuclear arms control treaty between the US and Russia expired in February 2026, leaving the world’s two largest nuclear arsenals without major restrictions. The United Nations has urged both countries to agree on a new framework without delay.

Trump has proposed replacing the agreement with a broader deal that would also include China, which has been expanding its nuclear arsenal. But former US officials and analysts have said securing cooperation from Beijing and Moscow could take years, BBC reported.

The proposed meeting also follows recent developments in US-Russia energy and sanctions policy. On October 9, Trump announced an arrangement involving Russian diesel supplies to the US and international markets, along with temporary relief from American sanctions on Russian diesel exports.

Iran could feature, but not Ukraine

Trump has said the war in Iran could also come up in the discussions. But a senior US administration official told Reuters that Ukraine would not be on the agenda.

The official said Washington did not expect an agreement to emerge from the meeting. The discussions would instead serve as an initial conversation between the three leaders.

Trump to hold separate talks with Xi

Alongside the trilateral meeting, Trump will hold separate bilateral talks with Xi on Thursday, as RNA Media earlier reported. Their discussions could cover trade relations, Chinese purchases of American agricultural products and access to rare earth minerals.

Trump will first travel to the Philippines on Tuesday for the ASEAN summit before arriving in Shenzhen late on Wednesday. The 33rd APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting will take place on November 18-19, bringing together representatives from 21 member economies.

Moscow and Beijing have not yet publicly commented on the White House announcement.