President Donald Trump has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to the December G20 summit in Miami, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, the White House’s latest effort to reintegrate Moscow into the world’s diplomatic frameworks as its war against Ukraine drags on.

“We think it’s an opportunity for him to engage not just with the president, but with other world leaders, Rubio told reporters Wednesday after a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. “We hope that’s an invitation he’ll accept.”

The Russian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation that Putin would attend the event. It could mark the Russian president’s first in-person G20 visit since 2019 and his second trip to the U.S. since Trump returned to office last year.

Russia is showing few signs of slowing down in its war against Ukraine, now well into its fifth year. Its armed forces hammered Kyiv with drones on Wednesday, killing at least two people and damaging major infrastructure sites.

“If you only meet with people that you agree with, then these are very nice meetings but nothing happens,” Rubio said. “In order to solve problems, you have to meet with people that you disagree with or the people that you might have some issues with.”

In recent weeks, Trump has pushed for Ukraine to refrain from hitting Russian oil refineries, attacks which he has blamed for a spike in global gas prices. The president announced earlier in the month that Moscow and Kyiv had reached an energy ceasefire but the two sides have continued striking each other’s energy targets in the weeks since.

Putin’s last visit to the U.S. took place in August 2025. Trump greeted him in Alaska with a red carpet, and the pair shook hands before riding in the president’s limousine. But the confab notably did not result in peace in Ukraine, and Trump soon shifted his foreign policy attention to different matters.

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/23/trump-putin-g20-miami-01089850

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