DOMINANT ANGLE
Bucharest is worried about a negotiated settlement made over Kiev's head: the Romanian press mainly retains the risk for Europe of an agreement favorable to Moscow concluded between Putin, Trump, and Xi.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
According to the Wall Street Journal, Putin proposed a meeting with Trump and Xi during a call on October 9, possibly at the APEC in Shenzhen on November 18 and 19.
- 02
Peskov confirmed on Monday that the idea had been discussed, but that no one had presented a concrete proposal or agreement.
- 03
Sybiha believes a Russia-China-US summit would "encourage Putin to continue this war".
ANALYSIS
Bucharest, October 19, 2026. Romanian media outlets are reporting on information from the Wall Street Journal: Vladimir Putin allegedly proposed a three-way summit with Xi Jinping to Donald Trump to negotiate the end of the war in Ukraine, "under conditions favorable to Moscow," according to G4Media. Digi24 specifies, citing a former Russian intelligence officer, that the idea was put forward during a phone call on October 9, which also resulted in an agreement on the purchase of Russian diesel.
The meeting could take place on the sidelines of the APEC summit, scheduled for November 18 and 19 in Shenzhen. Mediafax and Digi24 report that on Monday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov confirmed that the topic of a "hypothetical meeting" had been discussed, while ensuring that "nobody presented any concrete proposals or agreements," in other words, that nobody presented any specific proposals or agreements. A senior US official, quoted by the newspaper, claims that Trump did not accept but could be open to the idea.
The Romanian tone is one of strategic concern. Mediafax writes that such a meeting without the Ukrainian president would be "unprecedented" and would cause concern in European capitals, with Ukraine and its allies fearing that a rapprochement between Washington and Moscow could lead to an agreement favorable to Russia. The articles place the proposal in the context of a US-Russia détente: suspension of sanctions, a decree signed on Friday lifting key sanctions, and an agreement on diesel.
The voice of Kiev is widely quoted. Digi24 reproduces the message from Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha on X: a meeting between Russia, China, and the US would have "the opposite effect" of a trilateral meeting with Ukraine and "would encourage Putin to continue this war." Peskov concedes that a definitive settlement is impossible without an interlocutor from Kiev.
Mediafax also recalls the public tensions between Trump and Zelensky: on Sunday, on Truth Social, the US president wrote that the Ukrainian leader "does not want to end this war" and asked him to stop striking Russian diesel refineries. The media outlet notes that such a meeting could strengthen China's role in the negotiations, with Beijing having to take into account its economic relations with Europe.
