Story perspectives

Trump Says He’s Open to Nuclear Summits With Putin, Xi

By Drooid · Oct 20, 2026, 6:30 AM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump said he is open to a summit with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping on nuclear denuclearization.
Trump said the summit would address nuclear issues, not Ukraine, and announced a diesel-fuel deal while waiving sanctions on Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned the diesel deal and sanctions waiver could embolden Putin and prolong the war.

History

Historical Context

On 31 July 1991 President George H.W. Bush and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed START I, capping each side at 6,000 nuclear warheads and 1,600 delivery systems. After its 2009 expiry, New START was adopted in 2010 by Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev. Trump’s 2024 summit proposal with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping echoes that framework, prompting Zelensky’s warning of renewed Russian aggression.

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Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump said he is open to a summit with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping on nuclear denuclearization.
Trump said the summit would address nuclear issues, not Ukraine, and announced a diesel-fuel deal while waiving sanctions on Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned the diesel deal and sanctions waiver could embolden Putin and prolong the war.

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