EU state pours cold water on Zelensky’s ‘peace conference’

The summit in Switzerland won’t put an end to the Ukraine conflict due to the absence of Russia and China, the Slovak FM has said

The Swiss-hosted Ukraine ‘peace summit’ is unlikely to produce any substantial results because several major powerbrokers, including Russia, have not sent delegations to the event, Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar has said. 

In a Facebook post on Friday, Blanar, who is representing his country at the June 15-16 conference near Lake Lucerne after Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was seriously injured in an assassination attempt last month, cast doubt on the conference.

The much-touted Ukraine ‘peace summit’ is expected to revolve around several points of Vladimir Zelensky’s ‘peace formula’, including prisoner exchanges and nuclear and food security. The plan, which also includes a demand that Russia withdraw from all territories claimed by Kiev, has been dismissed by Moscow as detached from reality. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed the conference as a Western trick to create the illusion of a global anti-Russian coalition and distract attention from the root causes of the conflict.

While stressing that Slovakia has consistently supported all peace initiatives aimed at ending the conflict, Blanar said he “does not expect the conference to bring a definite conclusion, because the Russian Federation will be absent, as well as other global players, such as China.”

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Slovakia believes that the hostilities can only be settled diplomatically, he added. 

Moscow has claimed that the main goal of the summit is to impose an “ultimatum” on Russia. 

China also decided against sending a delegation, saying the event lacks “three important elements” – recognition of the event by both Moscow and Kiev, equal participation of all sides, and a fair discussion of all peace proposals. 

China has also put forward its own peace plan, which was praised by Moscow. It calls for “respecting the sovereignty of all countries” and “abandoning Cold War mentality.”

On Friday, Putin unveiled a new proposal to resolve the conflict with Ukraine. He said that Moscow would begin talks with Kiev as soon as it withdraws its troops from Russia’s Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye Regions. Ukraine must also commit to neutrality, “denazification,” and “demilitarization,” he said, adding that this deal should lead to the lifting of Western sanctions against Russia. Both Kiev and NATO have rejected the proposal.