US Invites Putin to Miami G20

Washington has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend the December G20 in Miami. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday the trip could be an opportunity for him to meet with President Donald Trump.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, quoted by Russian news agencies, called Russia “grateful and appreciative for this invitation.”

“We will make a decision and work through it via diplomatic channels,” Peskov said.

Rubio had just finished a meeting with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the U.N. General Assembly, as the United States continues to deal with Russia on the war in Ukraine despite stalled peace talks.

“We’ve invited President Putin to the G20. We think it’s an opportunity for him to engage not just with the president but with other world leaders. We hope that’s an invitation he’ll accept,” Rubio said.

The G20 summit is set for Dec. 14–15 at Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami.

“As permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, Russia and the United States have enormous potential for developing cooperation. Unfortunately, that potential remains largely untapped,” the ministry said, according to the Russian state news agency TASS.

Peskov said Wednesday that Putin is already willing to meet Trump again.

“Presidents Putin and Trump always emphasize in their telephone conversations their readiness to hold another meeting at some point, if necessary,” Peskov said, according to TASS.

Trump told reporters Tuesday he thought Putin would discuss a peace deal. American envoys have participated in talks in Moscow and Kyiv this year, yet peace remains elusive.

Putin has not attended the G20 in person since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

“I don’t know that he’s coming. I doubt he’d come, to be honest with you,” he told reporters. “If he came, it would probably be very helpful. I’m of the opinion that you talk to everybody.”

Trump and Putin last convened in Anchorage, Alaska, for discussions in August 2025. That marked the first time Putin had been on U.S. soil since 2015. He hasn’t been in the lower 48 since before the full-scale war.

Trump did not initially contemplate inviting Putin to the G20 summit in Miami.

“No, I haven’t thought of that. It’s an interesting question. I want to think about that for a little while,” he said when asked in September 2025.

The G20 comprises 19 countries, including Russia, as well as the European Union and the African Union. Trump has also considered inviting Poland to the event.

Rubio also said Trump might see Chinese leader Xi Jinping again in Miami and at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Shenzhen, China. Xi arrived in the United States Wednesday for a state visit. The White House put arrival events on Sept. 23, with talks and a state dinner later in the week.

Russia was removed from the old G8 in 2014, but never left the G20. Trump has said removing Moscow from the G8 was a mistake.

Reuters contributed to this report.