Zelensky seeks Asia's support for Ukraine's peace plan

President Zelensky said this as he sought international support for a peace summit to be held in Switzerland on June 15 and 16. The summit is intended to show that there is a common understanding among most nations on the next steps towards peace in Ukraine and to convey this to Russia.

That the civilised world has not allowed Ukraine to be seized by an aggressor shows that the international community puts stock in the rules-based order and respect for human life, said Mr Zelensky.

The war has also brought together countries with different world views in support of Ukraine, and demonstrated that most nations truly desire cooperation for collective security, he added.

“What brought them together? Naturally, diplomacy,” he said. “Diplomacy does work when it truly aims to protect lives.”

In a speech aimed at galvanising support for his vision of the terms needed to end the war – particularly from Asian countries – Mr Zelensky called on leaders gathered at the annual security forum to personally participate in the upcoming Ukraine-backed peace summit.

But the participation of key protagonists remained in doubt, as Russia has made clear it would not be taking part, and China has said that it would be “difficult” for it to attend if Russia did not participate.

US President Joe Biden, who is locked in an election campaign against Donald Trump, has yet to confirm his attendance at the summit. But Mr Zelensky said the US has confirmed “high-level” official participation.

China an ‘instrument in the hands of Putin’: Zelensky

Mr Zelensky asserted that Russia has been using Chinese influence and Chinese diplomats to pressure countries in this region against participating in the peace summit.

At a press conference following his speech, he had strong words to describe China’s support for Russia’s war efforts, citing intelligence reports that Beijing has been supplying equipment that Moscow has used in the war.

This runs counter to President Xi Jinping’s earlier promise that China will not involve itself in the war, nor support Russia with weapons, said Mr Zelensky, who called support for Russia a “strategic mistake”.

 “You can never support a country that’s an aggressor... It says that the policy of your country is also the same in general, supporting aggression,” he said.

He added: “It’s unfortunate that such a big, independent, powerful country as China is an instrument in the hands of (Russian President) Putin.”

Mr Zelensky said he had hoped to meet the Chinese delegation on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, but this did not materialise.

Earlier in the day, Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun said China stands firmly on the side of peace and dialogue in the Ukraine crisis.

“We have put strict control on the export of dual-use items, and have never done anything to fan the flames,” he said.

‘Time is running out’

In his speech, Mr Zelensky, 46, listed nuclear security, food security and the return of Ukrainian children as the peace summit’s three priorities.

He stressed that the summit is not about weapons support, but about finding a path to peace.

“This is about the support of the very end of the war. It’s about disrupting it, and doing it in all regions,” he said in his first in-person address at Asia’s premier security forum.

Mr Zelensky last spoke at the Shangri-La Dialogue in 2022, when he appeared via videoconference wearing a black T-shirt with an illustration designed by a Singaporean teen. It showed a girl spray-painting the blue and yellow colours of the Ukraine flag.

Time is running out, he said, as he renewed his call for international support. Mr Zelensky’s arrival in Singapore on June 1 coincided with Russia’s largest missile and drone attack in more than three weeks against Ukraine’s critical infrastructure.

“(Abducted Ukrainian) children are growing up in Putin’s land, where they are taught to hate their homeland, and being told they have no families while their loved ones wait for them at home in Ukraine,” he said.

“After the peace summit, when the global majority agrees on the common understandings and steps, the relevant parties will pass this to Russia,” he added.

Wong Pei Ting

The Straites Times

Asia News Network