This article was originally published in Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). Read the original article 

By Alex Raufoglu

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in an unprecedented trilateral summit next week, with Iran and nuclear arms control on the agenda, while US officials said Russia's war against Ukraine would not be explicitly discussed.

The White House confirmed on November 13 that the three leaders will meet on November 19 on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen, southeastern China. Trump and Putin will not hold a separate one-on-one meeting during the visit.

White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said Trump intended to discuss reducing nuclear weapons worldwide, describing their proliferation as particularly dangerous. Senior US officials cautioned that no agreement was expected, characterizing the gathering as an initial conversation to open discussions on arms control.

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Iran In Focus

The planned trilateral discussion comes as the Trump administration maintains economic pressure on Tehran and threatens further military action, while Russia and China retain close ties with the Iranian government.

A senior US official confirmed that Trump intends to raise Iran at the trilateral meeting but offered no details about whether Washington would seek Moscow's and Beijing's help in ending the conflict or restraining Tehran's regional activities.

Mark Katz, professor emeritus at George Mason University and a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, told RFE/RL that Trump might hope to persuade Putin and Xi to pressure Iran to halt attacks by Tehran and the Houthis, Iranian-backed militants that control much of northern Yemen.

But Katz questioned whether either leader would cooperate. "I don't think that Putin or Xi will be willing to pressure Iran at all," he said, arguing that Iranian activities divert American attention from countering Russian and Chinese interests.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reinforced Washington's position at the Federalist Society's National Lawyers Convention in Washington on November 13.

Asked what would constitute an American victory in Iran, Rubio said that "Victory means [Iran] can't have a nuclear weapon. One way or another."

Rubio accused Iran's clerical leadership of pursuing an expansionist ideological agenda, sponsoring terrorism and supporting armed groups across the Middle East, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and militias in Iraq.

He argued that Tehran's missile development and uranium enrichment had brought it closer to acquiring the capabilities needed to build a nuclear weapon, despite its denials that it seeks one.

Rubio said economic pressure had weakened the Iranian government and reduced the immediate need for further military action. But he insisted that preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons remained essential.

"Nothing is half a world away anymore," he said, warning that an Iranian nuclear capability would threaten the US and its regional partners.

Nuclear Hurdles

Nuclear arms control is also expected to be discussed at the trilateral meeting.

The New START treaty, the last remaining nuclear arms control agreement between Washington and Moscow, expired in February, removing restrictions on the world's two largest nuclear arsenals for the first time in more than five decades.

Trump rejected Russia's proposal to extend the agreement for another year, instead calling for a new, modernized arrangement that would include China.

That ambition faces significant obstacles, however. Pentagon estimates put China's nuclear arsenal at more than 600 warheads, compared with more than 5,000 each in the American and Russian arsenals. Beijing has shown little interest in accepting restrictions on its considerably smaller stockpile.

"We do think it's time for China to step up to the adults' table, if you will, and have adult conversations about adult things," a senior US official told RFE/RL.

The official acknowledged the difficulty of the task, saying: "We do not expect to get to any kind of agreement." He described the gathering as "the beginning of hopefully a conversation that can be productive going forward."

Luke Coffey, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, told RFE/RL that the meeting offered limited practical benefits for Washington.

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"In reality, this will be less of a trilateral meeting and more of a bilateral one, with the US on one side and China and Russia on the other, albeit with Moscow as the junior partner," Coffey said.

He added that he could not envisage anything substantive emerging beyond giving Beijing and Moscow geopolitical validation.

Katz was similarly skeptical. "Personally, I expect no meaningful agreement emanating from the trilateral summit," he told RFE/RL. "It will mainly provide a photo op for each of the three leaders."

Ukraine Excluded

The decision to leave Ukraine off the agenda comes as Washington pursues separate diplomatic contacts with Moscow over Russia's nearly five-year-old invasion.

A senior US official said the administration had a "whole other track" for discussions about the war, involving Washington, Moscow, and Kyiv, and that China was not part of it.

"We've had many meetings recently with the Russians, but China is not really a part of that track, so it doesn't seem appropriate to have the Ukraine discussion there," the official said.

Billionaire Elon Musk is expected to accompany Trump during portions of the trip to Shenzhen because of his extensive business interests in China. Officials said Musk would not participate in the formal meeting with Xi or the trilateral summit.

His involvement comes amid growing congressional scrutiny of the role of Musk's SpaceX in Ukraine's wartime communications.

Democratic senators Jeanne Shaheen and Chris Coons have demanded that Musk and SpaceX preserve documents concerning disruptions to Ukraine's access to Starlink and Starshield satellite services in October and again on November 12.

In a November 13 letter to Musk, the senators said the interruptions had affected communications used by Ukrainian forces, including systems supporting interceptor drones defending civilian population centers against Russian attacks.

They also questioned conflicting explanations from Musk and senior administration officials about who had authority to impose the restrictions, calling for a full accounting of the decisions and greater government oversight of critical national security capabilities.

Trump's Asian tour begins in Manila, where he will attend the ASEAN summit and meet Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. before traveling to Shenzhen for APEC and his bilateral meeting with Xi.

Copyright (c)2025 RFE/RL, Inc. Used with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

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