According to Ukrainian Prime Minister, Denys Shmyhal, it is “very important … to attract” representatives of Russia to the second summit.
He said that it is necessary to seat Russian representatives at the negotiating table to “make manipulation and lies impossible.”
“Here is this wide diplomatic table where 100-plus countries will sit, we want these countries were even more, so that it would be 150-plus countries that will demonstrate Russia’s ability to negotiate peace or Russia’s inability to negotiate peace.
Denys Shmyhal
“This will be demonstrated at this table,” he said at a news conference.
Shmyhal said that the summit would take place by the end of this year.
In June, some 100 delegations from countries and international organisations attended the first Summit on Peace in Ukraine, aimed at crafting a path that many participants said could pave the way to ending the ear.
Dozens of countries declared that Ukraine’s “territorial integrity” should be respected and urged “dialogue between all parties” to find a lasting settlement in the continuing conflict with Russia.
They also backed a call for the full exchange of captured soldiers and the return of deported Ukrainian children.
However, while the vast majority of participants signed on to the final communique issued at the end of the two-day summit in Switzerland, several countries did not.
India, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates attended the summit, represented by foreign ministers and envoys, but were among those who did not sign the joint communique.
Russia and China were not present.
The following month, Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that he aimed to have a plan ready in November to enable Ukraine to hold a second international summit on his vision of peace in Ukraine, and he said thatrepresentatives of Russia should attend.
Shmyhal Says Ukraine Doubled Weapons Production In 2024
Moreover, Denys Shmyhal, Ukraine’s Prime Minister, said that the country has increased its production of weapons this year.
“In the first eight months of 2024, we have doubled our weapons production compared to 2023. We are making progress. Drone production continues to grow.”
Denys Shmyhal
The Ukrainian Prime Minister noted that Ukraine plans to build over a million drones by the end of the year.
He also gave a positive assessment of the financial and macro-financial policy under the leadership of the Ministry of Finance, the National Bank and with the help of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), noting that it is “very balanced and considered.”
“We are doing this. This is what our partners are asking for – to raise taxes. Because this is our responsibility. It is our responsibility to finance the Ukrainian army and no one else’s,” Shmyhal pointed out.
Shmyhal’s remarks came as Russian officials reported a Ukrainian drone attack.
Ukraine launched a massive drone attack on the Moscow region, killing at least one woman and wounding several people.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said its air defences shot down 144 Ukrainian drones overnight, with 20 alone over the Moscow region.
The overnight assault destroyed dozens of houses, forcing the diversion of some 50 flights from airports around the Russian capital.
Andrei Vorobyov, Russia’s Moscow region Governor, stated that six people were hospitalised and two more required outpatient care after the drone attack in the Moscow region.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says a large-scale drone attack on the Moscow region shows that Russia needs to keep fighting Ukraine.
He said as long as Ukrainian troops remain present in Russia’s Kursk region, Moscow cannot envision any negotiations with Kyiv and will continue what it calls its special military operation.
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