World leaders head to Asia for a week of summits, including a planned Trump–Xi–Putin meeting
Several high-level summits are taking place in Asia this week, including the APEC leaders' meeting in Shenzhen, where a three-way meeting of US President Donald Trump, China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin has been confirmed. Analysts say it may prove more symbolic than substantive.
The focus of global politics shifts to Asia this week, as several high-level summits take place against the backdrop of the contest for influence between China and the United States. The main event is the leaders' meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC) in Shenzhen, a technology hub in southern China. It begins on Wednesday, two weeks after US President Donald Trump's side lost the midterm elections.
APEC members account for more than 60% of global GDP, and the forum has mainly promoted free trade and multilateralism. This year, attention may fall on the confirmed three-way meeting between Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin. It has been compared to the 1945 Yalta conference, where the leaders of the US, Britain and the Soviet Union decided the shape of postwar Europe. Analysts, however, consider a "Yalta 2.0" that would settle the fate of Ukraine and Taiwan without their involvement unlikely.
Xiaoyu Pu, an associate professor of political science at the University of Nevada, said the meeting may be more symbolic than substantive. In his assessment, Trump is interested in nuclear arms control, Xi wants a stable relationship with Washington while keeping China's partnership with Russia, and Putin wants to preserve his leverage over Ukraine.
Other gatherings
Before APEC, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit begins in the Philippines on Sunday, with Trump attending. US officials will also hold a sidelines meeting of the Quad: Australia, India, Japan and the US. In Cambodia, a Francophone summit is under way at the same time, attended by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Topics include AI supply chains and governance, tariff reductions and the green energy transition. Regional issues include the South China Sea dispute, the crisis in Myanmar and the status of Taiwan. A South China Sea pact is not expected to be signed this year, and talks will continue next year when Asean's leadership passes to Singapore. On Thursday the International Court of Justice could find Myanmar responsible for genocide. Next month the G20 summit takes place in Miami, which Xi is expected to attend if US–China relations stay steady.
