China offers to host Putin-Trump summit – WSJ
China has presented a proposal to hold a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump to help end the Ukraine conflict, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
China has long sought to position itself as a potential peace broker in the Moscow-Kiev conflict, presenting its own roadmap to resolve the crisis.
The development comes after Putin and Trump held a phone conversation on Wednesday – their first confirmed contact since Trump returned to the White House last month. The leaders had a “lengthy and highly productive” conversation, according to the US president. Trump later announced that he and Putin had agreed on an “immediate” start of negotiations to resolve the Ukraine conflict.
In recent weeks, Chinese officials have put forward a proposal to the Trump team through intermediaries, suggesting a summit between the two leaders and offering to help with peacekeeping efforts following a potential truce, the WSJ reported, citing sources in Beijing and Washington.
According to the report, the Chinese offer envisions a US-Russian summit without the participation of Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky. The proposal goes against the West’s long-standing commitment to involve Kiev in any conflict-related discussions.
The White House declined to confirm to the WSJ whether it had received China’s offer but dismissed it nonetheless, with a White House official describing it as “not viable at all.” The Chinese Foreign Ministry also declined to comment on the report, stating only that Beijing is “pleased” to see that Russia and the US are “strengthening ties and intensifying dialogue on a range of international issues.”
During their conversation, Trump and Putin reportedly agreed to visit each other’s countries.
The Kremlin press service has confirmed that Putin invited Trump to visit Moscow, but did not provide a time frame for any potential trip. The US president later indicated that their first meeting would “probably” take place soon in Saudi Arabia.
No peace talks on Ukraine have been held since the early months of the conflict. The negotiations between Russia and Ukraine held in Belarus and Türkiye broke down in spring 2022, with both sides accusing the other of making unrealistic demands. Senior US State Department official Victoria Nuland said in 2024 that Washington and its allies advised Kiev not to agree to the terms demanded by Moscow.
