World leaders join the Ukraine summit as they test power in Kyiv via Reuters
By John Revill and Emma Farge
LUCERNE, Switzerland (Reuters) – World leaders gathered in Switzerland on Saturday for a summit aimed at pressuring Russia to end its war in Ukraine, but the absence of Moscow’s powerful allies like China will dampen its influence.
A number of Ukrainian participants will take part in the conference, but China will remain absent after Russia was cut out of the process on the grounds that it dismissed the event as a waste of time and had no interest in attending.
Outside of China, hopes of isolating Moscow are over, and recent military setbacks have put Kyiv on the back foot. The war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas has also diverted Ukraine’s attention.
The talks are expected to focus on broader concerns stemming from the war, such as food and nuclear security and freedom of movement, with a draft of the final declaration identifying Russia as an aggressor in the conflict, the sources said.
“This conference threatens the limits of Ukraine’s diplomacy,” said Richard Gowan, UN Director of the International Crisis Group. “However, it is an opportunity for Ukraine to remind the world that it defends the principles of the UN Charter.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia would end the war in Ukraine only if Kyiv agreed to abandon its NATO ambitions and hand over all four states Moscow had named – demands Kyiv quickly rejected as tantamount to surrender.
Putin’s stance clearly reflected Moscow’s growing confidence that its forces are the first in the war.
Moscow is carrying out what it calls its special military operation in Ukraine as part of a wider struggle with the West, which it says wants to bring Russia to its knees. Kyiv and the West reject this and accuse Russia of waging an illegal war of conquest.
Switzerland, which hosted the conference at the behest of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, wants to pave the way for a future peace process that includes Russia.
But political divisions over Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II have played a role in the event, and Zelenskiy has even accused Beijing of helping Moscow sabotage the rally, a charge denied by China’s Foreign Ministry.
China had said it would consider participating, but ultimately declined because Russia would not be there.
“It is clear that at the moment, according to the state of affairs, in China the special relationship with Russia takes precedence over any other consideration,” said Bernardino Regazzoni, former Swiss ambassador to China.
About 90 countries and organizations have committed to the two-day gathering in Buergenstock, a mountain resort in central Switzerland. This conference had to deal with a different system surrounded by China.
US Vice President Kamala Harris and the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Britain, Canada and Japan are also expected to attend. India, Turkey and Hungary, which maintain good relations with Russia, are also expected to join.
Russia, which sent tens of thousands of troops to Ukraine in February 2022, described the idea of a conference without it as “vain”.
Ukrainian supporters are marking the Swiss talks with a series of events in the nearby city of Lucerne to draw attention to the cost of military aid, with a demonstration planned to call for the return of prisoners and children taken to Russia.
European officials privately admit that without the support of Moscow’s major allies, the summit’s impact will be limited.
“What can (Zelenskiy) hope for?” said Daniel Woker, former Swiss ambassador. “Another small step forward in international solidarity with Ukraine as a victim of Russian aggression.”
