Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly proposed a three-way summit with President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, a meeting that would leave Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky out of the room.
Putin pitched the idea during an Oct. 9 phone call with Trump, according to people familiar with the discussions who spoke to The Wall Street Journal. That same call also produced Trump’s agreement to facilitate the sale of Russian diesel onto global markets.
The Kremlin proposed holding the talks alongside next month’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that discussions were underway but said no agreement had been reached.
“There is no clear understanding yet regarding the meeting itself or its potential agenda, although all three parties acknowledge the hypothetical possibility of such a meeting taking place,” Peskov told The Journal.
A senior U.S. official told the newspaper that Trump has not agreed to attend. However, the president could be open to the idea as he continues pushing for a negotiated end to the four-year war.
China has reportedly signaled that it would not object to the meeting if Trump takes part.
The proposal surfaces as Trump’s relationship with Zelensky has sharply deteriorated and Washington has eased pressure on Moscow.
On Friday, Trump waived most of the sanctions and tariffs set to take effect against Russia under the bipartisan Lindsay Graham Act, which he signed last month. Instead, the president ordered a review lasting up to 60 days.
The administration argued the move could help keep energy prices in check while keeping Russia at the negotiating table.
Trump also went after Zelensky on Sunday after Ukrainian drones struck an oil terminal in St. Petersburg. The president accused the Ukrainian leader of attacking Russian diesel infrastructure and said Zelensky “doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did.”
“I WANT THIS WAR END!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Moscow, meanwhile, reportedly sees the proposed summit as a chance to position Russia alongside the U.S. and China as one of the powers shaping the terms of any settlement.
A former Russian intelligence officer briefed on the discussions told The Journal that Putin has ambitions for something resembling a second 1945 Yalta summit. That historic post-World War II meeting saw the Allied powers negotiate the postwar order.
This time, however, the talks would conspicuously exclude both Ukraine and its European allies, according to the former officer.
The reported proposal raises the prospect of the leaders of the world’s three most powerful nations sitting down to decide the future of the conflict, with Kyiv left on the sidelines.
For now, the summit remains only a possibility. Peskov stressed that no agreement has been reached and that the agenda remains unclear, while the senior U.S. official made clear Trump has not committed to attending.
Still, the timing is notable. The proposal comes as the Trump administration has eased up on Russia through the sanctions waiver and the diesel arrangement, even as the president’s frustration with Zelensky boils over in public.
Whether Trump ultimately accepts Putin’s invitation could shape the next chapter of his push to bring the war to an end
