As the Kremlin claimed China is already preparing a trilateral summit with Russia and the US, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha met Beijing’s ambassador in Kyiv to discuss further steps Beijing could take toward a just peace.
The meeting focused largely on reviving bilateral dialogue ahead of the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday, Oct. 21.
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Political contacts and visits, as well as additional coordination in international organizations, growing trade and wider access to the Chinese market for Ukrainian goods were also on the agenda.
“The Ukrainian side is counting on Beijing to play a constructive role,” the ministry said, adding that Sybiha thanked the ambassador and his staff for continuing work in Kyiv despite daily large-scale Russian attacks.
Beijing prepares for a trilateral summit
Kremlin’s aide Yuri Ushakov claimed China was already preparing a meeting among the Russian, US and Chinese leaders. The idea was reportedly brought up during talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and senior US envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg on the same day. None of the three capitals had rejected it.
“The hosts of the APEC summit will take charge – or rather, are already taking charge – of the preparations,” Ushakov said according to Interfax-Russia on Wednesday.
“And, should circumstances prove favorable, they – our Chinese friends – will certainly incorporate this meeting into the program of events in Shenzhen,” he continued.
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Neither Washington nor Beijing has publicly confirmed this account, and Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning previously said on Oct. 19 that China has no information on the rumored trilateral meeting.
Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned against excluding Ukraine on Tuesday, Oct. 20, insisting Kyiv must participate in any talks concerning its sovereignty and the war’s outcome.
According to the Wall Street Journal on Oct. 19, Putin first proposed the format during an Oct. 9 telephone call with US President Donald Trump, hoping to settle the war with Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on terms favorable to Moscow.
During that same telephone discussion, Trump struck a controversial diesel deal with Russia that led to a week of escalated tensions between Kyiv and Washington.
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit will be held in Shenzhen on Nov. 18-19, Bloomberg reported, noting that the Russian president rarely travels abroad because of security concerns – primarily Western sanctions and a 2023 International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant.
However, he plans to attend the summit in person for the first time since 2017.
Moscow open to talks with Kyiv
Ushakov also said, according to Russian state-owned media TASS, that Putin told Witkoff Russia was “in principle, ready to resume” trilateral negotiations with Ukraine and the US in November.
Moscow wants the talks to focus on postwar security arrangements for Russia and Ukraine, he said.
Witkoff had arrived with documents outlining approaches to ending the war, developed during his talks with Zelensky, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb in Oslo, Norway on Oct. 20.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin would review the proposals, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov ruled out political concessions.
Beijing – Moscow’s longstanding partner
Although China presented itself as neutral in Russia’s war, its military and economic ties with Russia have continued to deepen since the full-scale invasion was launched in 2022.
Ukraine’s Military Intelligence (HUR) told Kyiv Post in July that more than 550 Chinese service members have trained at Russian military institutions, while over 180 Russian troops completed similar internships in China in November 2025 alone.
China was also the largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in August, at €8.4 billion ($9.7 billion), according to the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
Cut off from Western technology by the European sanctions, Russia has increasingly turned to Chinese suppliers.
Chinese components, including turbo-jet engines, have helped Moscow build faster Shahed-type drones that are significantly harder for Ukraine to intercept due to their speed, able to reach 400-600 kilometers per hour (250-370 miles per hour).
On Oct. 16, The Insider reported that Shenzhen Xingkai Technology, a Chinese company, offered to supply nearly $2.9 million worth of communications equipment for attack drones, potentially helping Russian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) operate deeper inside Ukraine.
The offer included 500 mesh modems to a factory in Russia’s Alabuga special economic zone.
Days prior, Zelensky warned that Beijing is assisting Russia’s efforts in building their own domestic Starlink rival, “Rassvet.” The system, still under development, could strengthen military communications, reconnaissance capabilities, and long-range drone operations.
“It is a pity that China is not on our side in this war – politically. It is not even about weapons,” Zelensky said on Sept. 17, noting that Beijing has enough influence to push Putin to the negotiating table, but chooses not to.
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