There won’t be a delegation from Moscow at this significant summit in Switzerland, which brings together over 100 nations and organisations to map out a course towards peace between Russia and Ukraine.The gathering, which is taking place at a resort close to Lucerne, is being used by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to garner support for the 10-point peace proposal he first proposed in late 2022.
Speaking to the conference on Saturday, Zelensky said that after the other participating countries had approved the plan for ending the war, it would be sent to Russia. After that, there would be a second peace summit, where “we can fix the real end of the war.”“The peace formula is inclusive, and we are happy to hear and work on all proposals, all ideas of what is really needed for peace and what is important to you dear friends,” Zelensky said.
“I urge you to be as active as possible and I am proud all parts of the world, all continents are now represented at the peace summit,” he added.Most Western governments have sent representatives at a senior level. US Vice President Kamala Harris is attending and announced that Washington will supply Kyiv with an aid package of more than $1.5 billion to help the country rebuild its battered infrastructure and address humanitarian needs stemming from the conflict, according to a statement from the White House on Saturday.
“This war remains an utter failure for Putin. I am here in Switzerland to stand with Ukraine and the leaders from around the world in support of a just and lasting peace,” Harris said.Heads of state and government from several European states, including France, Germany and the UK are also joining, as is Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. However, China will not attend. It has said that any such meeting needs to be attended by both Russia and Ukraine.
Zelensky’s plan includes demands for a cessation of hostilites, the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian soil and the restoration of Ukraine’s pre-war borders with Russia. It also calls for the establishment of a special tribunal to prosecute Russian war crimes. “Ukraine never wanted this war, it’s a criminal and absolutely unprovoked aggression of Russia. And the only one who wanted it was Putin,” Zelensky said. Russia has expressed little interest in agreeing to those terms and has shown no sign of compromise when it comes to the territorial issues. On Friday, the day before the summit was set to kick off, Russian President Vladimir Putin restated the Kremlin’s own peace plan, which Ukraine is unlikely to ever agree to.
Source: Here