Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday expressed his hope that a peace summit will be held this fall, and that the talks in Saudi Arabia this week will be a step towards achieving that goal.
Zelensky told Ukrainian diplomats in a letter that nearly 40 countries will take part in the meeting in Saudi Arabia.
He added, “We are working to hold it (the peace summit) next fall.”
He continued, “Autumn is very close, but there is still time to prepare for the summit and involve most countries in the world.”
Zelensky and his team are working with allies to build broad support for a “peace summit” that would establish principles to support a settlement to end the war that began nearly 18 months ago.
The summit is supposed to build on a ten-point plan that Kiev put forward last fall and Zelensky is promoting it.
His vision of peace revolves around a set of points, most notably the full restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, the complete withdrawal of Russian forces, ensuring food and energy security, nuclear safety, and the release of all prisoners.
No agreement has yet been reached on a venue for the summit.
According to Ukrainian and Western officials, Russia will not participate in the summit.
It is noteworthy that the date of the talks in Saudi Arabia has not yet been officially set, but the Wall Street Journal announced that the meeting may take place in Jeddah on August 5 and 6. She added that the event will be attended by high-ranking officials from 30 countries.
For his part, the advisor to the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Yevgeny Mikitenko, announced that representatives of various levels will participate in the talks.
A spokesman for South African President Vincent Magvina also confirmed his country’s participation. According to him, representatives of the Group of Seven countries, the European Union, India, Brazil and Turkey will participate in the Jeddah talks.
Earlier, the Czech Republic confirmed its participation in the negotiations. The Brazilian government confirmed its intention to send a representative to Jeddah as well.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry expressed its hope that Beijing would officially confirm its participation in the coming days.
As for the Russian position, the Russian presidential spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, announced that Moscow will follow up on the “peace meeting” on Ukraine to be held in Saudi Arabia.
Russia has repeatedly indicated that “any attempts to assist in a peace settlement deserve a positive assessment.”
At the same time, Peskov drew attention to the lack of favorable conditions for a peace settlement in Ukraine at the present time.
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2023-08-02 17:46:38
