Switzerland Says 99 Countries And Organizations In The World Will Participate In Ukraine Peace Summit

JAKARTA - The Swiss government said on Monday, as many as 90 countries and international organizations have so far registered to take part in the summit to discuss peace of the Ukraine conflict.

Russia, as one of the conflict parties in Ukraine, has so far not been invited to a meeting scheduled to be held in Switzerland on June 15-16.

But the government said in a statement the meeting would aim to "jointly define a roadmap" on how to engage Russia and Ukraine in a future peace process.

Swiss President Viola Amherd said the summit to be held on Saturday and Sunday aims to map the way to a possible peace of the Russian-Ukraine conflict that has lasted nearly 28 months.

"This is not propaganda," said President Amherd, quoted from AP.

"This is about the basis for humanitarian assistance provided by Switzerland and to start a dialogue," he continued.

The president of Switzerland added that most of the participants, about half of whom will be represented at the level of the head of state or government, are state leaders. Meanwhile, the "settle" comes from organizations such as the United Nations.

Some, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, are expected to attend a summit at the Buergenstock Resort facing Lake Lucerne.

About 160 invitations have been sent. Swiss authorities said the final list of participants was expected out on Friday. Countries such as Turkey, South Africa and Brazil have not indicated their presence. Meanwhile, India will attend but the level of its deputy is not clear.

Brazil and China say they will not participate unless the two parties are in conflict, including Russia, are present at the negotiating table, according to Swiss officials.

Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said Switzerland had repeatedly admitted there would be no peace process without Russia.

"The question is not whether Russia will participate, the question is when?" he said.

He also added that Switzerland often contacted authorities in Moscow about the conference.

As many as 4,000 military personnel will be deployed to provide security and support for air transportation, surveillance, as well as installing safety fences and steel wires for the event, Swiss officials said, adding an increase in cyberattacks ahead of the summit was noted, but did not provide details.

Previously, Switzerland in January agreed to host the conflict summit in Ukraine. Russia has considered the summit a waste of time. According to Switzerland, Russia was not invited to participate because it indicated they were not interested in attending, although it also stressed Russia should be part of the peace process.