Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to disrupt Ukraine's upcoming peace summit in Switzerland, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on May 24 in response to reports about Putin's alleged willing to halt the war at the current front lines.
A Reuters report from earlier in the day, which cited undisclosed Russian sources, claimed that Putin is open to a ceasefire that recognizes the current front lines on the battlefield but will fight on if Kyiv and its allies do not agree.
Kuleba rejected these reports, saying the Russian president has no desire to end Moscow's full-scale war.
"Putin is desperately trying to derail the Peace Summit in Switzerland on June 15–16. He is scared of its success," he wrote on X.
"His entourage sends these phony signals of alleged readiness for a ceasefire despite the fact that Russian troops continue to brutally attack Ukraine while their missiles and drones rain down on Ukrainian cities and communities."
Ukraine's summit will be centered around Ukraine's 10-point peace formula, a plan first outlined by President Volodymyr Zelensky in fall 2022 that calls for a complete withdrawal of Russian troops from occupied Ukrainian lands.
Fifty countries have reportedly confirmed their participation in the global peace summit, including India.
Zelensky previously ruled out Russia's participation in the event, as it continues to attack Ukraine on a daily basis.
Participants of the summit will formulate a common negotiating position on the outcome of the war and submit it to Russia, according to presidential spokesperson Sergii Nykyforov.
"Only the principled and united voice of the global majority can force him to choose peace over war. This is what the peace summit is intended to achieve. This is why he (Putin) is so afraid of it," Kuleba said.
Nate Ostiller
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