President Amherd in favor of follow-up conference with Russia
Published: Friday, Jun 7th 2024, 09:50
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President Viola Amherd assumes that the Ukraine peace conference organized by Switzerland in mid-June is only the prelude to further negotiations. "It is clear to us that we will not sign a peace agreement at the end of the conference," Amherd told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper on Friday.
For peace to be achieved, both parties need to be at the table, she said, referring to the fact that Russia is not taking part in the summit. "Russia could then also be present at a possible follow-up conference."
According to Switzerland, more than 80 countries have confirmed their participation, including the USA with Vice President Kamala Harris. Russia itself has not been invited to the conference on June 15 and 16, although the government in Moscow has made it clear that it would not have sent representatives even if it had been invited.
Amherd went on to say that the conference was intended to create a platform for dialog at which the first step would be to discuss how peace could be achieved in Ukraine. It would not be about peace in Ukraine in the narrow sense, but "only" about humanitarian issues, nuclear safety, freedom of navigation and food security. "We want to build trust and seek solutions to these issues, which are important for the civilian population and then also for peace later on."
Amherd made it clear that it was also important for the success of the conference that countries close to Russia participate. India had made a commitment. In the case of South Africa, nothing had been definitively decided yet. According to a public statement, China had indeed canceled, but it had also said that it attached great importance to the peace conference. Talks are still ongoing. "It was important for us that not only Western European countries and the USA are taking part. Around half of the more than 80 participants who have already confirmed their attendance come from Western Europe, the other half from Africa, South America and Asia. So the Global South is represented."
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