Switzerland will host a Ukraine peace conference in June without Russia
Switzerland’s government said Wednesday it will host a high-level international conference in June to help chart a path toward peace in Ukraine after more than two years of war, and expressed hope that Russia might join in the peace process someday, AP reports.
The lakeside Bürgenstock resort near Lucerne is expected to host the June 15-16 gathering that will draw top government officials from dozens of countries, following up on a plan laid out in recent months by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis.
The top Swiss diplomat said more than 100 countries would be invited to the gathering.
“The first country that we spoke with, after Ukraine of course, was Russia, because a peace process cannot happen without Russia, even if it won’t be there for the first meeting” Cassis told reporters in the Swiss capital, Bern.
Swiss daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung reported that President Joe Biden may attend but White House officials said Wednesday no decision yet had been made about who from the U.S. government might attend the summit and that no travel plans have been confirmed.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned last week that prospective negotiations to end the fighting in Ukraine could be successful only if they take Moscow’s interests into account, dismissing a planned round of peace talks as a Western ruse to rally broader international support for Kyiv.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said there will be no peace in Ukraine until Russia’s goals are met.
