U.S., Chinese and Russian Leaders to Hold First-Ever Trilateral Meeting on the 19th... North Korea Talks in Focus

[Financial News] The New York Post, a U.S. media outlet, reported on the 13th that the top leaders of the United States, China and Russia will hold a trilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, which will take place in Shenzhen, China, on the 19th (local time).   
A gathering of the leaders of the world’s three largest nuclear-armed countries would be an unprecedented and momentous event in modern diplomatic history.
Some have compared the meeting to the Yalta Conference, where the leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union discussed the postwar international order toward the end of World War II.
According to White House officials, the meeting’s main agenda is to conclude a new nuclear arms reduction agreement that includes China after the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) between the United States and Russia expires.
For U.S. President Donald Trump, who needs a breakthrough after a crushing defeat in the midterm elections, reaching an agreement among the three countries on their nuclear weapons stockpiles could be a major diplomatic achievement.
There has also been speculation that the North Korea issue could be raised, alongside ways to end the Iran war.
The main question is whether President Trump will ask Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin to help ensure that North Korea refrains from armed provocations and cooperates in dialogue. That is because Trump has shown strong interest in resuming North Korea-U.S. talks, including meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un within the year.
However, with North Korea and Russia having drawn closer recently, the three great powers’ calculations over North Korea’s denuclearization are intricately at odds, leaving it unclear whether the meeting will lead to a substantive agreement.
With Russia focused on ending the war in Ukraine and China having its own interests regarding U.S. pressure for nuclear arms reduction, the South Korean government is also closely watching what impact the U.S.-China-Russia meeting may have on the situation on the Korean Peninsula and the Northeast Asian security landscape.

[email protected] Jeon Min-kyung Reporter