- Trump to propose nuclear arms reduction to Putin, Xi.
- China resists trilateral nuclear talks, citing arsenal disparities.
- US anticipates initial talks, not an immediate nuclear agreement.
- Iran conflict will be discussed; Ukraine topic deemed inappropriate.
US President Donald Trump will raise the issue of nuclear arms reduction during an unprecedented meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in China next week, the White House said on Friday. The three leaders are expected to meet on Thursday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Shenzhen.
White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said Trump believes the proliferation of nuclear weapons poses a serious danger and wants to discuss reducing global nuclear stockpiles. The meeting will be part of Trump’s four-day Asian tour, which begins on Monday and also includes a visit to the Philippines.
However, the US push to make nuclear disarmament a central topic has created some discomfort in Beijing, which is hosting a summit focused primarily on trade and commerce. China has repeatedly resisted attempts by Washington and Moscow to bring it into nuclear arms negotiations, citing the significant difference between its arsenal and those of the two countries.
Trump Wants China At The Table For Nuclear Arms Discussions
A senior Trump administration official said Washington was not expecting an agreement on nuclear arms reduction during the meeting. However, the administration hopes the discussion will mark the beginning of a broader conversation involving all three countries.
“This is a difficult topic for China to address, but we do think it’s time for China to sort of step up, you know, to the adults’ table, if you will, and have adult conversations about adult things,” the official told reporters.
The official added that Washington viewed the meeting as an opportunity to initiate discussions that could eventually become productive. However, it remains unclear whether either Beijing or Moscow intends to engage with Trump on nuclear arms reductions.
China has maintained for years that direct negotiations with Washington over its nuclear programme are inappropriate, arguing that the US and Russia should first hold discussions because they possess significantly larger nuclear arsenals.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Russia has the world’s largest stockpile of stored nuclear warheads, followed by the United States and China. The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), which governed nuclear arms limits between Washington and Moscow, expired this year.
Iran War On Agenda, Ukraine Unlikely To Be Discussed
Apart from nuclear disarmament, Trump is also expected to raise the US-Israeli war against Iran during his meeting with Putin and Xi. However, a senior administration official said the US President was unlikely to bring up Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
Trump is also not expected to hold a separate bilateral meeting with Putin or discuss Ukraine’s access to satellite communications services provided by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Musk is accompanying Trump on his China visit but will not be present during the meeting between the three leaders.
Explaining why Ukraine was unlikely to feature in the discussions, the US official said Washington had held several recent meetings with Moscow, while China was not part of that diplomatic engagement.
The official said it therefore did not appear appropriate to bring the Ukraine issue into the trilateral meeting.
Meanwhile, Trump is not expected to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his Asian tour, the administration official added.
