Zelensky Accuses China Of Helping Russia Sabotage Swiss Peace Summit
A much anticipated Ukraine pace summit is due to take place this in the middle of this month in Lucerne, Switzerland. It is an initiative of the Zelensky government and his Western backers, but notably absent (and never invited) will be Russia.
It will essentially be an exercise in pushing Zelensky's peace formula to the world, especially in hopes that Global South countries will back it, but Moscow has called it but a PR exercise in futility.
President Zelensky has urged for President Biden to be there in person - but it looks like won't, as he has a Hollywood star-studded campaign fundraiser to attend.
Kiev has also hoped that China could be a big player at the summit - as a voice of influence that comes more into its corner, but that's looking increasingly unlikely as well. Zelensky is now actually accusing Beijing of thwarting the whole initiative, as Wall Street Journal reports:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused China of pressuring countries to boycott a peace conference he’s promoting in Switzerland later this month and warned that Beijing’s support for Russian President Vladimir Putin will only prolong the war.
"Using Chinese influence, using Chinese diplomats, Russia is doing everything to disrupt the summit. Regrettably, such a big, independent country as China has become an instrument in Putin’s hands," Zelensky said Sunday in Singapore.
This provocative accusation and denunciation comes China’s Foreign Ministry announced Friday that Chinese representatives aren't going to participate in the Switzerland summit because any peace initiative "should be endorsed by both Russia and Ukraine, with the equal participation of all countries."
Throughout the conflict Zelensky has largely avoided direct criticisms of China, but that is changing...
President Zelenskyy was previously very reluctant to openly criticize China, but is now not mincing words anymore, after Beijing refused to attend the peace summit in Switzerland and is clearly supporting Russia in its war against Ukraine.
— Yasmina (@yasminalombaert) June 2, 2024
« China, unfortunately, is working… pic.twitter.com/q7errlgTZa
Over 100 countries are expected to attend the gathering, which will run June 15-16. At best, the conference might hammer out the basis for possible future Ukraine-Russia ceasefire negotations.
However, Ukraine's ten-point peace formula demands the withdrawal of all Russian forces and the return of all Ukrainian territory. For Moscow this is a non-starter, especially after declaring four eastern territories to be part of the Russian Federation last year.