Russia · 02 September, 2026 · 2 min read
Kremlin Weighs Trilateral Meeting Between Putin, Trump, and Xi at Shenzhen APEC Summit
Putin, Trump, and Xi may meet trilaterally at November's Shenzhen APEC summit. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov publicly floated the idea.
40 outlets, one story, no spin found.
9 of 10 outlets skipped it: china’s foreign ministry said it had no information.
40outlets compared
APEC trilateral talks
The Kremlin is weighing a possible trilateral meeting among Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, and Xi Jinping at the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders’ summit in November, with Yuri Ushakov saying the topic was discussed during talks in Bishkek.
“the three of them will be able to hold a meeting”
Ushakov said the next leaders’ summit will be hosted by the Chinese city of Shenzhen on November 18-19, and that Russia, China, and the United States are members of APEC, which has 21 members.
In Bishkek, where Putin and Xi attended a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting, Ushakov said Xi mentioned that Trump would be attending and that Putin would likely attend as an invitee.
Ushakov also said, “if what was said proves true, the three of them will be able to hold a meeting,” while the White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said, “We do not have any announcements at the moment about President Trump's attendance at the APEC summit.”
China won’t confirm
China has avoided confirming the possibility of a trilateral meeting between Xi, Trump, and Putin during the APEC leaders’ summit in Shenzhen, according to the Spanish outlet Diario de Santiago.
Guo Jiakun, the spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told reporters, “Sobre la cuestión que menciona, actualmente no tengo información que pueda proporcionarles”.
Diario de Santiago said the possibility was raised by the Kremlin after Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin discussed it during a meeting in Kyrgyzstan at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit.
The Kremlin’s position, as described by multiple outlets, remained conditional on participation and logistics, with Ushakov saying the leaders are expected to attend and that “if everything goes as planned, then the three will be able to meet.”
What happens next
Ushakov linked the trilateral scenario to the APEC calendar, saying the meeting would be considered during the Shenzhen summit on November 18 and 19, while also leaving open that it could be limited to meetings with each leader.
“meetings with each of them would be held”
Radio Mitre described the Kremlin’s framing as contingent on “confirmations and the agenda of each delegation in Shenzhen, on November 18 and 19,” and said Ushakov specified that “meetings with each of them would be held.”
The same Kremlin messaging was echoed by RTVE.es, which said the White House had not confirmed Trump’s attendance at APEC and that Ushakov described a possible trilateral meeting “at the next APEC summit in November.”
Beyond APEC, RTVE.es also reported Putin’s remarks that damage from Ukrainian attacks on Russian rear areas since late June amounts to almost 1% of Russia’s GDP, including Putin’s estimate of nearly “a hundred” ships hit in enemy attacks in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, as the Kremlin chief argued, “Ukraine cannot cause us a critical blow.”