On Sunday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to attend his upcoming peace summit, as Ukraine continues to face relentless attacks from Russia in the 27th month of the invasion. Zelenskyy made his appeal in an English-language video recorded in Kharkiv, standing amidst the charred remains of a printing house destroyed by a Russian missile strike on Thursday. He announced that more than 80 countries would be attending the summit. However, it remains uncertain if Biden will participate, and Beijing, which maintains close ties with Moscow, has not yet confirmed its attendance. “I am appealing to the leaders of the world who are still aside from the global efforts of the Global Peace Summit – to President Biden, the leader of the United States, and to President Xi, the leader of China,” said Zelenskyy. “Please, show your leadership in advancing the peace – the real peace and not just a pause between the strikes. Zelenskyy added the summit would “show who in the world really wants to end the war”.
Quick Read
- Zelenskyy, from ravaged Kharkiv, urges Biden and Xi to join peace summit
- Date: May 26, 2024
- Location: Kharkiv, Ukraine
- Context: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeals to U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend a peace summit amid ongoing Russian attacks.
- Objective: Zelenskyy aims to gather international support and pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin by hosting peace talks in Switzerland next month.
- Participants: Over 80 countries have confirmed attendance; Biden and Xi have not yet confirmed.
- Venue: Zelenskyy recorded his appeal from a destroyed printing house in Kharkiv, recently hit by a Russian missile strike.
- Statements: Zelenskyy urges global leaders to demonstrate leadership for real peace, not just a temporary ceasefire.
- Ukrainian Peace Plan: Calls for a full Russian withdrawal and restoration of Ukraine’s borders, which Russia opposes.
- Russian Response: Putin reportedly willing to negotiate a ceasefire recognizing current battlefield lines; Ukraine rejects this as a ploy to derail the peace summit.
- Current Situation: Russian forces make gains in eastern Ukraine and Kharkiv region, with ongoing missile strikes causing significant casualties.
- Future Concerns: Ukraine braces for potential new Russian offensives in the Sumy region.
The Associated Press has the story:
Zelenskyy, from ravaged Kharkiv, urges Biden and Xi to join peace summit
Newslooks- KYIV- (AP)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed to U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Sunday to attend his peace summit as Ukraine struggles to stave off unrelenting attacks by Russia in its 27-month-old invasion.
Ukraine hopes to host as many countries as possible at Kyiv-led talks in Switzerland next month aimed at uniting global opinion on how to halt the war and piling pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has not been invited.
Zelenskyy spoke in an English-language video recorded in the northeastern city of Kharkiv, inside the charred remains of a printing house that was destroyed on Thursday in a Russian missile strike. He said more than 80 countries would attend.
But it was unclear whether Biden would be there, nor has Beijing, which maintains close ties with Moscow, said whether it would attend.
“I am appealing to the leaders of the world who are still aside from the global efforts of the Global Peace Summit – to President Biden, the leader of the United States, and to President Xi, the leader of China,” said Zelenskyy.
“Please, show your leadership in advancing the peace – the real peace and not just a pause between the strikes.
Zelenskyy added the summit would “show who in the world really wants to end the war”.
Kyiv, in its peace plan, calls for a full withdrawal of Russian troops and a restoration of its internationally recognised borders, something Moscow considers a non-starter.
Last week, Russian sources said that Putin was ready to halt the war in Ukraine with a negotiated ceasefire that recognises the current battlefield lines.
In response, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the Russian leader was “trying to derail” the Switzerland event because he was “scared of its success”.
“His entourage sends these phony signals of alleged readiness for a cease-fire despite the fact that Russian troops continue to brutally attack Ukraine while their missiles and drones rain down on Ukrainian cities and communities,” he wrote on X.
Russia has previously said it sees no point in Ukraine’s conference.
RUSSIAN ADVANCES
In recent months Moscow’s forces have made slow but steady gains along several parts of the sprawling eastern front and are attempting to push deeper into the northeastern Kharkiv region after a ground incursion launched earlier this month.
The regional capital has been repeatedly hit by Russian bombs and missile strikes, including the attack on the printing house that killed seven and another on a DIY hardware store on Saturday that killed at least 14.
In his video address, Zelenskyy also said Moscow was gathering troops for new “offensive actions” further northwest of Kharkiv along the Russian-Ukrainian border.
Ukraine’s army chief said last week his forces were preparing for a possible Russian assault on the Sumy region that neighbours Kharkiv.
