Trump to raise nuclear-arms cuts with Putin, Xi on Thursday, White House says

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WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump will raise nuclear-arms reduction at a meeting in China next week with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the White House said on Friday.

"He will discuss the reduction of nuclear weapons in the world, whose proliferation President Trump believes is very dangerous," Olivia Wales, a White House spokeswoman, said on a call with reporters. She added that the meeting would take place on Thursday in China.

Trump's repeated insistence that the first-of-its-kind meeting of the three leaders focus on nuclear arms reductions has riled China, which is hosting a summit focused on trade and commerce. China has rebuffed attempts to talk about nuclear arms with Russia and the United States, which have the largest stockpiles of such weapons.

Putin, Xi and Trump are expected to meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Shenzhen. Trump is leaving on Monday for a four-day trip to Asia that also includes a stop in the Philippines.

"We do not expect to get to any kind of agreement," a senior Trump administration official said regarding the nuclear issue. "This is a difficult topic for China to address, but we do think it's time for China to sort of step up, you know, to the adults' table, if you will, and have adult conversations about adult things."

The official added: "This is the beginning of hopefully a conversation that can be productive going forward."

Beijing has for years resisted direct engagement with Washington about its nuclear program, saying it is more appropriate for Russia and the US to speak directly because of their large arsenals.

Russia has the most stored nuclear warheads, followed by the United States and China, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty between the US and Russia expired this year.

It was not clear whether Russia or China intended to engage in a conversation about arms reductions with Trump.

The Chinese and Russian embassies in Washington did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.

Trump will also raise the US-Israeli war against Iran in the meeting but is not expected to raise Russia's war in Ukraine, the official said.

The Republican president is not expected to have a one-on-one meeting with Putin or discuss Ukraine's access to satellite communications service provided by Elon Musk's SpaceX. Musk is joining Trump on the trip to China but will not attend his meeting with Xi and Putin, according to the official.

"We've had many meetings recently with the Russians, but China is not really a part of that track, so it doesn't seem appropriate to have the Ukraine discussion there," the person said.

Trump is also not expected to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his trip to Asia, according to the official. —Reuters