In a bid to end the ongoing war in Ukraine, China has proposed to host a summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. The newspaper cites sources familiar with the matter, revealing that Chinese officials have been discussing the proposal with the Trump administration in recent weeks.
The proposed summit would aim to facilitate peacekeeping efforts following a potential truce. However, China’s foreign ministry has not yet responded to requests for comment on the matter.
President Trump recently revealed that he had received expressions of peace from both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during separate phone calls. Following these conversations, Trump instructed top US officials to begin discussions on ending the Ukraine conflict.
Despite no peace talks being held since the early stages of the conflict, which is nearing its third anniversary, Putin and Trump have agreed to meet. Trump indicated that their first meeting is likely to take place soon in Saudi Arabia.
The conflict began with Russia’s invasion and subsequent occupation of one-fifth of Ukraine’s territory. Russia has since demanded that Kyiv cede more territory and remain permanently neutral under any peace agreement. Ukraine, on the other hand, insists that Russia withdraw from the occupied territory and is seeking NATO membership or equivalent security guarantees to deter future attacks.
In the face of these demands, China has called for equal participation by both Ukraine and Russia in peace talks. Despite not being directly involved in the crisis, Beijing has consistently promoted peace talks under its own terms.
In a recent interaction with reporters, Trump expressed optimism about the prospect of peace, stating that both Putin and Zelenskiy desire an end to the conflict. He further revealed that a team, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, and Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff, will lead negotiations to end the war.
However, the Trump administration has also acknowledged the difficulty of Ukraine’s aims to recover all its territory occupied by Russia since 2014 and secure NATO membership. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth expressed these views at a recent NATO meeting in Brussels, stating that such goals were unrealistic and would only prolong the war.
The international community, including Germany, France, Poland, Italy, Spain, the UK, and the European Union, has issued a joint statement insisting that Ukraine’s fate must not be decided without Kyiv’s active participation and pledged to enhance support for the country.
