Russia has announced it will not participate in any follow-up to the Swiss-organized “peace summit” held in June, calling the process “fraud,” according to Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Saturday.
Russia was not invited to the June meeting, which included delegates from over 90 countries, and has deemed the discussions meaningless without its involvement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed hopes of organizing a follow-up meeting by the end of the year that includes Russia.
Zakharova stated on Telegram that the current process does not contribute to a resolution and labeled it as another “manifestation of fraud by the Anglo-Saxons and their Ukrainian puppets.” She indicated that Russia is open to discussing “truly serious proposals” that consider the “situation on the ground,” subtly referencing Russia’s annexation of four Ukrainian regions without full occupation.
She criticized Ukraine and its Western allies for not genuinely pursuing peace, pointing to Ukraine’s recent incursion into Russia’s Kursk region and Zelensky’s ongoing requests for long-range Western weaponry.
Ahead of the June summit, President Vladimir Putin outlined conditions for talks with Ukraine, including a demand for Kyiv to abandon claims to the four regions that Russia asserts as its own. Moscow has since maintained it cannot negotiate while Ukrainian forces remain in its Kursk region.
Zelensky’s position is based on a “peace formula” presented at the end of 2022, which calls for the withdrawal of all Russian troops, the reaffirmation of Ukraine’s post-Soviet borders, and accountability for Moscow regarding the invasion.
