Zelensky after summit in Switzerland: Russian leaders “are not ready for a just peace”

Dozens of countries meeting at a peace summit in Switzerland reiterated their support for Ukraine’s independence and territorial sovereignty, while They pointed out that kyiv must dialogue with Moscow to end the war that Russia started in 2022.

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But as soon as the summit ended, the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelensky stated that Russia and its leaders “are not ready for a just peace”after his Russian counterpart demanded the de facto surrender of Ukraine to begin negotiations.

Russia can negotiate peace “tomorrow if it withdraws from our territory,” Zelensky insistedin a press conference at the end of the summit.

More than two years after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, leaders and senior officials from more than 90 countries met at a luxurious hotel complex in the Swiss city of Burgenstock, to try to end the largest conflict in Europe since World War II. .

The meeting, in which Russia was not present, It closed with a declaration supported by nearly 80 of the 92 participating countries. Brazil, India and Saudi Arabia were not among them.

The document reaffirmed “the principles of sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all States, including Ukraine”, called for a prisoner exchange and asked for the return home of children deported to Russia.

It also calls for “involvement and dialogue between all parties” to the conflict to end hostilities.

The question of “how and when Russia can be included” in the peace process remains open, acknowledged Viola Amherd, Swiss president and host of the summit.

China decided not to participate in the summit in the absence of Russia.

However, Zelensky stated that Ukraine was not an “enemy” of China, responding to a question about its relations with Beijing.

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“Ground realities”

“We know that peace in Ukraine will not be achieved at the stroke of a pen… This (summit) was not a peace negotiation, because Putin is not serious about ending the war“Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, stressed on Sunday.

Zelensky, who indicated that there would be a second peace summit, wants to unite the international community around a peace proposal that could be presented to Moscow.

The meeting came at a delicate time for Ukraine on the battlefield, where Russian forces are larger and better equipped.

However, “it is not because we are weakening that we begin to talk about peace”stated the Ukrainian president.

Putin on Friday raised conditions that kyiv considers unacceptable to begin negotiations, which would amount to surrender and abandoning territories recognized as part of Ukraine by the international community.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov insisted on Sunday that it was not an “ultimatum”, but rather a “peace initiative that takes into account the realities on the ground.”

“The current dynamics of the situation on the front clearly shows us that it continues to get worse for Ukrainians,” he said.

The Russian Defense Ministry on Sunday claimed responsibility for the capture of Zahirne, another town located in the Zaporizhzhia region of southern Ukraine.

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Children, food and nuclear safety

Summit participants were divided into three working groups on Sunday: nuclear safety, humanitarian affairs, food security and freedom of navigation in the Black Sea.

Final declaration calls for release “by full exchange” of war prisoners and also of “all Ukrainian children deported and illegally displaced” by Russia.

The text also called for all illegally detained Ukrainian civilians to be “resent to Ukraine.”

The food security talks examined the decline in agricultural production and exports, which had a ripple effect around the world, as Ukraine was one of the breadbaskets of the planet before the war.

The statement emphasizes that “food security should in no case be instrumentalized” and that freedom of navigation in the Black Sea and the Sea of ​​Azov must be guaranteed.

Discussions also addressed the destruction of fertile land during war and the ongoing risks posed by mines and unexploded ordnance.

Finally, The document also calls for Ukraine to regain “full and sovereign” control of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.the largest in Europe.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) repeatedly warned of the risk of a nuclear catastrophe at this facility controlled by Russian forces.

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