The Swiss government is organizing a two-day high-level international conference in mid-June to seek ways to end the war in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky requested that such a conference — the so-called Peace Summit — be held without Russia’s invitation. The Swiss authorities said back in January that they were ready to take over the organization. On Wednesday, the time and place of the conference were announced.
According to the Federal Council ( the government of Switzerland), the conference will be held at the resort Bürgenstock in the canton of Nidwalden, near the city of Lucerne, on June 15 and 16, writes the edition Blick.
The statement said there is now sufficient international support for the conference, which organizers envision as a start to the peace process. The meeting, the statement said, should become a platform for high-level dialog on ways to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine on the basis of international law and the UN Charter, while developing a concrete plan for Russia’s participation in the peace process.
At the same time, Moscow repeatedly said that it would not participate in the talks in Switzerland even if Russia had been invited to them. The Russian Foreign Ministry explained this by the fact that Switzerland, having joined the sanctions against Moscow over the invasion of Ukraine, ceased to be a neutral mediator.
Ukraine has also opposed inviting Russia to the so-called Peace Summit. Kyiv’s official position is that only the withdrawal of Russian troops from the entire internationally recognized territory of Ukraine can be a condition for negotiations with Russia.
The Swiss authorities did not say which countries would take part in the negotiations and at what level they would be represented.
Earlier, the Ukrainian initiative to discuss a so-called peace formula held several meetings involving representatives of dozens of countries from both the West and the so-called global South. It is unclear whether it will be possible to ensure the participation in the meeting in Switzerland, for example, China and other states that do not support either side of the conflict.
