LIVE – War in Ukraine: Zelensky assures that his country is not the “enemy” of China

The vast majority of participants at the conference which ended today agreed on a text supporting the “sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity” of Ukraine. But which also calls for involving Moscow in the negotiations.

From Burgenstock, Volodymyr Zelensky affirmed that Ukraine was “not the enemy” of China, in response to a question about its relations with Beijing. “Ukraine has only one enemy: Putin,” he insisted. “I believe that friends are those who help when things are difficult. And I would like China to be a friend of Ukraine,” he insisted.

China is an ally of Russia and has been accused of contributing to the Russian war effort by supplying components. Beijing chose not to attend this weekend’s peace summit because Moscow was absent.

Russia and its leaders “are not ready for a just peace”, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused on Sunday, following a Peace Summit in Switzerland, which provided strong support for the integrity of his country. “We have to do our job, let’s not think about Russia, let’s do what we have to do. For now, Russia and its leaders are not ready for a just peace. This is a fact,” said the president. Although Vladimir Putin said he was ready for talks, he nevertheless set unacceptable conditions for kyiv, which would amount to a surrender and abandonment of territories recognized as Ukrainian by the international community.

The first summit on peace in Ukraine, which is being held in Switzerland without Russia, calls for “all parties to be involved” in the conflict to put an end to hostilities, according to the final communiqué of which AFP obtained a copy.

The text, which is supported by the vast majority of the hundred or so participants, also reaffirms “the principles of sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all states, including Ukraine”.

This final communiqué “reaffirms the territorial integrity” of the country, denounces “the militarization of food security” and calls for the return of Ukrainian children deported by Russia.

Russia claimed the capture of a new village in southern Ukraine on Sunday, continuing its slow advance on the front against a Ukrainian army lacking men and ammunition. “Units of the Eastern force grouping liberated the settlement of Zagirne in the Zaporizhia region and occupied more favorable positions,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in its daily report.

The Russian army has been gaining ground for months in Ukraine, particularly in the east, without however achieving a real breakthrough.

The Kremlin said on Sunday that Ukraine should “reflect” on the peace proposal recently formulated by President Vladimir Putin, because the situation on the front “is getting worse” for Ukrainian forces.

“The current dynamics of the situation on the front clearly shows us that it will continue to get worse for Ukrainians. It is likely that a politician who places the interests of the homeland above his own and those of his masters would consider such a proposal,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Norway assured on Sunday that it would provide 1.1 billion crowns ($103 million) to Ukraine to help it repair its energy infrastructure and ensure the country’s electricity supply before next winter. “Russia is carrying out massive and systematic attacks to paralyze the electricity network but the Ukrainians are working day and night to maintain the essential supply of electricity to the population,” greeted Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, quoted in a press release.

According to the latest estimates from the Ukrainian government, Russian bombing of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has led to the country’s electricity production being halved since the winter.

Some 90 delegations are meeting again in Switzerland this Sunday June 16 with the objective of reaching a consensus to take a “first step” towards peace in Ukraine, and thus put pressure on Russia, which has not not invited to the meeting.

A Russian journalist was killed in a drone attack in eastern Ukraine, where he was preparing to produce a report, his media announced on Sunday, three days after the death of another Russian correspondent near the front . “Our correspondent Nikita Tsitsagi was killed in an attack by Ukrainian army drones,” News.Ru reported on Telegram.

According to him, the attack occurred in the area of ​​the Saint-Nicolas monastery, near Vougledar, a town where fierce fighting has been taking place for months. On Thursday, a Russian state television journalist was killed and another injured in a Ukrainian drone attack in Golmivsky, a Russian-controlled village close to the front lines in the eastern Donetsk region.

Here is the key information from the last 24 hours relating to the conflict:

– Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will present peace proposals to Russia once they have been approved by the international community, he declared on Saturday at the opening of the first peace summit in Ukraine which is being held until ‘until Sunday in Switzerland.

– Peace cannot be achieved at the price of a “capitulation” of Ukraine, affirmed Emmanuel Macron in unison with many other leaders participating in the peace summit, adding that “this war is a global problem”, and calling for “increasing pressure to obtain a truce from the Russian side”.

– Ukrainian bombings on the Russian border town of Chebekino killed five people, the governor of the Belgorod region, which is regularly the subject of strikes by Ukraine, announced on Saturday.

– German Chancellor Olaf Scholz denounced on Saturday the demands made by Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate with Ukraine, believing that they amounted to “dictating” peace. “It does not seem particularly effective to me, as a negotiation proposal, to tell Ukraine that it must withdraw from Ukraine,” the head of the Italian government quipped during the closing press conference. of the G7 summit.

– Kamala Harris, the American vice-president, announced new aid of more than $1.5 billion for Ukraine, mainly for its energy sector and for humanitarian aid.

Hello and welcome to this live broadcast dedicated to the war in Ukraine and its consequences around the world. There you will find all the latest information for this Sunday, June 16.