US President Donald Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin are scheduled to hold an unprecedented trilateral meeting Thursday on the sidelines of next week's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen, China.

The meeting of leaders of the world's three largest nuclear powers is expected to carry more symbolic significance than produce major breakthroughs, analysts say.

The White House said the plan Friday amid complicated relations among the three countries. Trump intends to discuss the Iran war and nuclear disarmament with Xi and Putin but will avoid the Ukraine conflict, a senior US official said.

The talks are expected to initiate discussions on nuclear arms reduction, although no agreement is anticipated. The last US-Russia nuclear arms treaty, New START, expired in February, ending restrictions on their arsenals for the first time in over 50 years. Trump wants a new agreement involving China, whose estimated 600-plus warheads are considerably fewer than the more than 5,000 held by each of the other two powers.

The meeting could strengthen China's international standing and allow Moscow to present itself as a global power. However, analysts say it may contradict Beijing's promotion of multilateralism and free trade at APEC.

The three leaders have previously held several bilateral meetings. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed concern that discussions could lead to decisions on Ukraine without Kyiv's involvement.

The Kremlin dismissed comparisons with the 1945 Yalta Conference, saying any outcome in Shenzhen could not be imposed on other countries.