Trump hopes China will help push Russia towards Ukraine peace talks

US President Donald Trump has said he would like China’s help in dealing with Russia as he pushes to bring an end to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

“I’d like China to help us out with Russia,” Trump said aboard Air Force One as he flew to Asia for a whirlwind tour that includes a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea.

The prospect may be optimistic, however. China has remained Russia’s closest ally and a key economic partner since Western nations imposed sanctions on Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine.

Trump’s comments come after a difficult week for Kyiv: Washington declined to provide Tomahawk cruise missiles, European Union leaders failed to release frozen Russian assets earmarked for Ukraine’s defence, and new Russian strikes inflicted more casualties.

Ending the conflict has become a central focus of Trump’s foreign policy, though his efforts have so far fallen short. A summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in August produced no breakthroughs, and Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Moscow.

“Every time I speak to Vladimir, I have good conversations and then they don’t go anywhere,” he said earlier this week.

On Wednesday, Trump announced new sanctions against Russia’s two largest oil companies — the first direct penalties his administration has imposed on Moscow since the war began. The Kremlin responded that it was “immune” to such measures.

While Thursday’s meeting with Xi is expected to focus primarily on US-China trade tensions, Trump said the war in Ukraine would also be on the agenda.

“I’d like to see China help us out [with Russia]. I have a very good relationship with President Xi. Very good,” Trump said, adding that Xi “wants to see the war end.”

Earlier this week, Trump claimed that the Chinese leader “can have a big influence on Putin.”

Beijing has never condemned Russia’s invasion and has been accused by the US and its allies of indirectly supporting Moscow’s war effort through oil purchases and exports of dual-use materials — goods that can serve both civilian and military purposes. China has denied these claims.

Putin and Xi have previously described their countries’ partnership as a “friendship with no limits,” and Russia has sought to deepen energy exports to China and other nations to offset losses from Western sanctions.

That alliance was on full display last month when Putin, Xi, and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un met in Beijing in a striking show of solidarity and military cooperation.