Beijing said it has no information on a rumored proposed meeting between the US, Russian and Chinese leaders.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning made the comments during a press conference on Monday, Oct. 19, according to Ukrainian state media Ukrinform.
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“Regarding this issue, I do not yet have any information that I could provide,” Mao said.
The comments were made in response to a rumored summit between US President Donald Trump, Chinese leader Xi Jinping, and Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of November’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said an unnamed senior US official stated that Putin proposed the summit as Moscow secured a diesel deal and sanctions relief measures with Trump.
According to a former Russian intelligence official, Putin floated the idea during a phone call with Trump on Oct. 9. The person added that Putin saw the proposed meeting as a chance to convene a new Yalta-style conference and divide the world into spheres of influence.
In February 2025, The Financial Times claimed it obtained a leaked Kremlin plan outlining similar goals, envisioning Moscow leading an economic bloc of developing nations that rivals the EU.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio later confirmed that discussions for the summit are ongoing.
“There’s been talks of a meeting. I don’t know whether it’s been finalized, but the president has been clear. He’d like the war in Ukraine and Russia to end,” Rubio told reporters during a visit to Uzbekistan, according to Reuters.
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The planned summit in Shenzhen would exclude Kyiv, despite the war being fought on Ukrainian territory.
After the diesel deal, the Trump administration also imposed intelligence and communications restrictions on Kyiv via the Starshield military satellite network.
While Kyiv and the White House claimed intelligence sharing had resumed, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that Kyiv was, once again, not warned about a Russian drone and ballistic missile attack that left at least 550,000 households without electricity.
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