The Donald Trump administration has called for a tripartite meeting with Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, and Xi Jinping, the leader of China, in China to discuss nuclear disarmament. Trump stated in a conversation with reporters at the White House that this meeting could be "something very positive for the world."
Details of the Possible Meeting
Trump added: "If they are willing, I think this meeting will take place in China." The three leaders are scheduled to participate next month in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China's technology hub.
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Putin proposed holding this meeting during a phone call with Trump on October 9. This proposal could be seen as an effort to end the war that Russia began in Ukraine over four years ago, without the presence of a representative from Ukraine.
Reactions to the Meeting Proposal
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that discussions about this meeting are ongoing. Additionally, Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State, has also publicly referenced these discussions. However, Trump emphasized that the focus of this meeting would be more on nuclear weapons and disarmament rather than the issue of Ukraine.
Since his first term in office, Trump has sought to reduce the defense spending of these three countries. In a social media post in 2018, he stated that he is "confident that in the not-too-distant future, Xi and I, along with Putin, will talk about meaningful stops to what has become a major and uncontrollable arms race." He also declared his goal as "disarming the world."
Challenges of Nuclear Disarmament
According to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), of the estimated 12,187 nuclear warheads in the world as of January 2026, about 9,745 warheads are in military stockpiles for potential use. Russia, possessing the largest nuclear arsenal in the world, along with the United States, accounts for 83 percent of the global inventory.
China ranks third with over 600 nuclear warheads, which constitutes only 6 percent of the global inventory. However, SIPRI notes that Beijing is expanding its nuclear arsenal at a faster rate than any other country.
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