China’s absence from the Swiss summit has raised questions about the significance of the event, which Russia has dismissed as “meaningless”.
World leaders are gathering in Switzerland for a summit aimed at pressuring Russia to end the war in Ukraine, but the absence of Moscow’s powerful allies such as China is expected to weaken its potential impact.
US Vice President Kamala Harris and the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan are expected to attend the summit, which begins on Saturday, along with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
India, Turkey and Hungary, which maintain warmer ties with Russia, are also expected to participate.
However, China remains abstaining after being shut out of the conference, with Russia dismissing it as “pointless” and saying it had no interest in attending.
China’s absence has diminished Western hopes of isolating Russia, while recent military setbacks on the battlefield have left Ukrainian forces at a disadvantage.
“The summit risks showing the limits of Ukrainian diplomacy,” said Richard Gowan, U.N. director at the International Crisis Group.
“But this is also an opportunity for Ukraine to remind the world that it adheres to the principles of the UN Charter.”
President Zelenskiy told reporters on Saturday that he predicted “history will be made” at the meeting.
Zelenskyy, who spoke alongside his Swiss counterpart Viola Amherd, said the meeting itself was already a positive development.
“We have succeeded in reintroducing to the world the idea that through joint efforts we can stop wars and establish a just peace,” he said.
Meanwhile, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the event an important step towards progress.
“Many issues related to peace and security will be discussed, but the biggest issues will not be discussed. That was always the plan,” he told Welt TV in an interview before leaving for Switzerland. “It’s a small plant that needs to be watered, but of course there is the prospect that a lot more will come from it.”
Meanwhile, Polish President Andrzej Duda said the summit was aimed at making geographically separated countries realise the magnitude of the threat Russia poses to the world.
Moscow’s demands
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that Russia would end the war if Ukraine abandoned its ambitions to join NATO and agreed to hand over all four provinces claimed by Moscow, a demand that Kiev swiftly rejected as tantamount to surrender.
Ukraine and the United States quickly rejected Putin’s demands, but his comments clearly reflect growing confidence that Russian forces have the upper hand in the war.
However, Scholz said: “Everyone knows that this proposal was not taken seriously and had something to do with the Swiss peace conference.”
Russia frames its so-called special military operations in Ukraine as part of a broader struggle with Western countries seeking to bring Russia to its knees.
Ukraine and the West reject this and accuse Russia of waging an illegal war of conquest.
Switzerland, which undertook the summit at the request of President Zelenskyy, hopes to pave the way for a future peace process that would also include Russia.
Around 90 countries and organisations have signed up to take part in the two-day meeting, which will be held in the mountain resort of Bürgenstock in central Switzerland.
