Trump Open to Putin's Controversial Summit Idea

President Trump says he's willing to sit down with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping—just not necessarily to hash out Ukraine, the Hill reports. Speaking to reporters before leaving for a Kansas rally Monday, Trump said he hasn't agreed to a three-way summit with the Russian and Chinese presidents but "would do it," framing the meeting as a forum on weapons and denuclearization, plus issues like trade, and suggesting it would likely take place in China. The three leaders have never before held formal talks together, Reuters reports.

Trump also, however, seemed to indicate he had no concerns over Ukraine's lack of participation in the hypothetical talks, CNBC reports: "Anything I can do to end the war, whether somebody's there or not." His comments followed a Wall Street Journal report that Putin floated the idea in a recent call to the POTUS, after which Trump moved to waive sanctions so the US could buy Russian diesel in a bid to lower prices before midterms. Ukraine's foreign minister called a US-Russia-China summit "unacceptable," arguing it would embolden Moscow. Trump dismissed criticism from President Volodymyr Zelensky on the waived sanctions and diesel deal, saying "maybe it's time" Ukraine found a new negotiator.