There is a plan to do so, Zelensky told foreign diplomats, including the Swiss ambassador, in Kyiv.
Alleged Russian disruptive activities were not confirmed by the Swiss defence ministry on Thursday at the request of the Swiss News Agency Keystone-SDA; reference was made only to Russian accusations that Switzerland had not invited Russia to the conference at the Bürgenstock resort overlooking Lake Lucerne in June.
More
More
All you need to know about Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland
This content was published on
Switzerland plans to host a high-level Ukraine peace conference in mid-June. The annoucement comes as Russia and China met in Beijing on Tuesday and reports that US President Joe Biden may attend the Swiss-hosted summit.
The Swiss Federal Office of Police (Fedpol) likewise did not reveal any details. In response to an enquiry, it stated that it “does not explain specific security measures in order not to jeopardise their effectiveness”.
Secret service information
In front of Ukrainian diplomats and foreign ambassadors, Zelensky referred to intelligence information. According to this, there is “concrete data that Russia not only wants to disrupt the peace summit, but also has a concrete plan: how to do this, how to reduce the number of participating countries, how to proceed to ensure that there is no peace for much longer”, the president said on Wednesday evening. He did not provide any further details.
Zelensky said that the partners would be informed through diplomatic channels about Moscow’s attempts, based on information from his presidential office. The president further announced that the world’s heads of state and government would soon receive invitations to the meeting.
The Ukraine peace conference, planned for June 15-16, is to take place directly after the G7 summit of leading democratic industrialised nations in Italy. The conference, which will bring together representatives from up to 80 countries, is intended to win over Russia-friendly powers such as India, South Africa and Brazil in favour of Ukraine’s ideas for a peace solution. China in particular is being courted to take part.
Incompatible demands
For over two years, Russian troops have been waging war in Ukraine, using violence against the civilian population and destroying non-military infrastructure. This comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the order to invade the southern neighbouring country on February 24, 2022, with the justification of a need to demilitarise and denazify the country. Zelensky, who is Jewish, was to be removed from power.
Russia has pronounced all peace talks without its participation pointless. Moscow has repeatedly emphasised its willingness to engage in talks, but with imposed conditions which are more likely to result in Ukraine’s capitulation. Ukraine’s goal is to regain all territories occupied by Russia, which for Putin would amount to a failure of his invasion.
More
More
Russian foreign minister derides Switzerland as ‘openly hostile country’
This content was published on
Following on Putin’s criticisms of the planned Ukraine peace conference in Switzerland, Lavrov has described Switzerland as unsuitable for negotiations.
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
Popular Stories
More
Swiss Abroad
How centuries of Swiss emigrants left their mark on the US
Bodycams: essential for good law enforcement, or a privacy risk?
Did you ever come across bodycams in your place of residence and if so, how do you think the use of bodycams alter the relationship between the public and (transport) police?
Swiss commission sees need for action in security policy
This content was published on
More spending on the army, defence cooperation with NATO and a revision of the neutrality policy: this is what a group of experts has recommended to the Swiss government.
Fossil of world’s oldest wasp discovered in Ticino
This content was published on
Excavations in Ticino have uncovered 248 fossilised insects dating back 239 million years. Among the finds along the Gaggiolo stream near Meride is the oldest wasp found to date.
Young people in Europe use condoms less frequently
This content was published on
Young people in Europe have used condoms much less frequently in recent years, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Switzerland, however, bucked the trend.
Nanoplastics found to interfere with tree photosynthesis
This content was published on
Tiny plastic particles reach the leaves and needles of trees via the roots and disrupt photosynthesis. This was shown by researchers at ETH Zurich in an experiment.
Swiss pensions and child allowances to increase from 2025
This content was published on
From 2025, old age and disability pensions will increase by 2.9% in Switzerland. The government is raising the minimum pension by CHF35 ($41.50) to CHF1,260.
Stricter Swiss sales and ad rules for tobacco products
This content was published on
From October 1, stricter sales, advertising and notification regulations for tobacco products and electronic cigarettes will apply in Switzerland.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.