UPDATE - Kremlin says China, Russia, US open to trilateral talks at APEC summit

ADDS FURTHER DETAILS; MINOR EDITS

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said Wednesday that no party has ruled out a possible meeting between the presidents of China, Russia, and the US on the sidelines of the upcoming summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum next month.

In remarks to journalists following talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in the city of St. Petersburg, Ushakov said that the topic of the potential meeting, which he said “garnered such intense global interest,” was also discussed during Wednesday's negotiations.

“None of the capitals involved – Moscow, Washington, or Beijing – have dismissed this idea,” Ushakov said, noting that the Chinese side, which will host the APEC leaders’ summit in the city of Shenzhen on Nov. 18-19, is already preparing for such a meeting and will incorporate it into the program of events “should circumstances prove favorable.”

Regarding the potential content of such a trilateral meeting between Putin and his Chinese and American counterparts, Ushakov said Moscow has put forward a number of “practical considerations,” without providing further details.

Earlier Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists at a press briefing that there is a “hypothetical readiness” on all sides to hold a trilateral meeting, and that the US seeks to discuss issues of strategic stability and nuclear disarmament at the meeting, though China is not interested.

“Using terms like ‘a new Yalta’ and the like are also inaccurate. However, when the leaders of the US, China, and Russia come together, it is, of course, a meeting that will command the attention of the entire world,” Peskov said.

On Monday, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing a former Russian intelligence officer briefed on the matter, reported that Putin proposed a trilateral meeting during an Oct. 9 phone call with US President Donald Trump to discuss the war in Ukraine and seek an end to the conflict on terms favorable to Moscow.

At the time, Peskov confirmed to the WSJ that discussions were underway regarding a possible meeting and that all three parties "acknowledge the hypothetical possibility of such a meeting taking place."

"No concrete proposals or agreements – neither regarding the meeting itself nor concerning a potential agenda or the content of such a meeting – were discussed or put forward by anyone," Peskov told a press briefing that same day.

Burç Eruygur