Russia Ukraine war update: Sunak says Putin not interested in ‘genuine peace’ as Zelensky hails ‘historic’ talks

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni dismissed a ceasefire offer for Ukraine by Russian president Vladimir Putin as “propaganda,” as she wrapped up a Group of Seven summit that saw a deal reached for a $50bn loan to Ukraine.

Asked about Putin’s cease-fire proposal, Meloni said it “seems to me more like a propaganda move than a real one.”

The Russian president said Friday he would “immediately” order a cease-fire in Ukraine and start negotiations if Kyiv begins withdrawing troops from the four regions Moscow annexed in 2022 and renounces plans to join Nato.

“If president Putin’s proposal is: We are willing to have a peace negotiation if Ukraine recognises the invasion of Ukraine and gives up the occupied parts… doesn’t seem particularly effective to me as a proposal,” Meloni said.

Ukraine’s allies in the West that are gathered for the peace summit in Switzerland this weekend have released the draft text of an agenda to end the war, which is now in its third year.

Titled “Joint Communique on a Peace Framework Switzerland”, the text states: “This Summit was built on the previous discussions that have taken place based on Ukraine’s Peace Formula and other peace proposals which are in line with international law, including the United Nations Charter.”

It asks for nuclear safety, global food security and release of prisoners of war as a common vision to bring peace and stability in Ukraine.

Here are the main points:

“Firstly, any use of nuclear energy and nuclear installations must be safe, secured, safe-guarded and environmentally sound. Ukrainian nuclear power plants and installations, including Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, must operate safely and securely under full sovereign control of Ukraine and in line with IAEA principles and under its supervision.

“Any threat or use of nuclear weapons in the context of the ongoing war against Ukraine is inadmissible.

“Secondly, global food security depends on uninterrupted manufacturing and supply of food products. In this regard, free, full and safe commercial navigation, as well as access to seaports in the Black and Azov Seas, are critical. Attacks on merchant ships in ports and along the entire route, as well as against civilian ports and civilian port infrastructure, are unacceptable.

“Food security must not be weaponised in any way. Ukrainian agricultural products should be securely and freely provided to interested third countries.

“Thirdly, all prisoners of war must be released by complete exchange. All deported and unlawfully displaced Ukrainian children, and all other Ukrainian civilians who were unlawfully detained, must be returned to Ukraine.

“We believe that reaching peace requires the involvement of and dialogue between all parties. We, therefore, decided to undertake concrete steps in the future in the above-mentioned areas with further engagement of the representatives of all parties.”

Western powers and countries from the rest of the world will use the second day of a major summit in Switzerland today to pursue a consensus on condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and underscoring concerns about the war’s human cost.

A draft of the final summit declaration seen by Reuters refers to Russia’s invasion as a “war” – a label Moscow rejects – and calls for Ukraine’s control over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant and its Azov Sea ports to be restored.

Moscow casts what it calls its special military operation in Ukraine as part of a broader struggle with the West, which it says wants to bring Russia to its knees. Kyiv and the West say Russia is waging an illegal war of conquest.

World leaders including US vice president Kamala Harris, German chancellor Olaf Scholz and French president Emmanuel Macron gathered this weekend at a mountaintop resort in a bid to bolster international support for ending the war.

Many Western leaders voiced forceful condemnation of the invasion, invoking the UN Charter in defence of Ukrainian territorial integrity, and rejecting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demands for parts of Ukraine as a condition for peace.

“One thing is clear in this conflict: there is an aggressor, which is Putin, and there is a victim, which is the Ukrainian people,” Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez said.

Some leaders are expected to depart early, and talks on Sunday will turn towards pursuing a joint position on the need for nuclear and food security, and the return of prisoners of war and children removed from Ukraine during the conflict.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Qatar had helped to mediate the return from Russia of 30 or more Ukrainian children to their families.

Kyiv says about 20,000 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied territory without the consent of family or guardians since the war began. Moscow rejects this, saying it has protected vulnerable children from the war zone.

The draft communique, dated 13 June, calls for all illegally deported children to be returned.

Ukrainian firepower has been improving since U.S. lawmakers approved a much-needed military aid package this spring, though not quickly enough to halt the Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine.

Although the influx of Western munitions has shrunk Kyiv‘s glaring artillery disadvantage, Moscow’s forces are still gaining ground along the snaking front line and will likely continue to do so through the summer, when the drier ground and longer days will only aid their push.

Ukraine is still on the defensive in the Donetsk region, enabling Moscow’s forces to inflict heavy losses during Ukrainian troop rotations and bringing them closer to crucial Ukrainian supply routes.

Calling for peace in war-hit Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky condemned Russian president Vladimir Putin’s military onslaught and invasion in his inaugural speech at the ongoing peace talks in Switzerland.

“Putin has taken the lives of thousands of our people to take over a neighboring country. I wish this to no one. I wish all the peoples of the world, every child, and family to live without war. I want this for all Ukrainians. Ukraine has the right to peace. Just like all of you,” he said last night.

The Ukrainian leader also explained Russia’s absence from the table, where it was not invited. “Now there is no Russia here. Why? Because if Russia was interested in peace, there would be no war. We must decide together what a just peace means for the world and how it can be achieved in a truly lasting way. The UN Charter is the basis for us,” Mr Zelensky said.

“No one has the right to kidnap the children of another nation. No one has the right to undermine peace. We are able to ensure the effectiveness of such principles. They are globally important,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin promised Friday to “immediately” order a cease-fire in Ukraine and start negotiations if Kyiv began withdrawing troops from the four regions annexed by Moscow in 2022 and renounced plans to join NATO. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected what he called an ultimatum by Putin to surrender more territory.

Putin’s remarks came as Switzerland prepared to host scores of world leaders — but not from Moscow — this weekend to try to map out first steps toward peace in Ukraine.

The move prompted the international criminal court to issue arrest warrants for both Putin and his children’s right’s commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova.

The horrific practice will be raised at the summit, which will also discuss food and nuclear security, which is taking place in Switzerland.

Anastasiia Motychak did not know why Irina – the person in charge of her camp in Russian-occupied Crimea – had just slapped her across the face; she just knew she missed her mum and wanted to go home to the Ukrainian city of Kherson.

It had been two months since the then 15-year-old had been put on a bus and moved from the then Russian-occupied Kherson, in southern Ukraine, to a two-week “vacation camp” in Yevpatoria, western Crimea. Kherson was no place for a child, the Russian soldiers had warned.

More than 70 camps for forcibly “re-educating” children have been found, according to the Ukrainian government, including in Belarus, occupied Crimea and even far-east Russia, where the children are three times closer to the United States than Ukraine.

Read Tom Watling’s special report:

US vice president Kamala Harris, who led the Washington delegation at the peace summit in Switzerland yesterday, said the Russian president was asking Ukraine to surrender to Moscow.

On the eve of the summit, Vladimir Putin said Russia would end the war if Kyiv agreed to drop its Nato ambitions and handed over four provinces claimed by Moscow. The conditions apparently reflected Moscow’s growing confidence that its forces have the upper hand in the war. The proposal was swiftly rejected by Ukraine and its allies in the West.

“He’s calling for surrender,” Ms Harris said, adding, “Let nothing about the end of this war be decided without Ukraine.”

“Freezing the conflict today, with foreign troops occupying Ukrainian land, is not the answer. It is a recipe for future wars of aggression,” said European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen.

Ms Harris announced more than $1.5bn in energy and humanitarian aid for Ukraine, where infrastructure has been pounded by Russian airstrikes since the 2022 invasion.

A draft communique for a summit of world leaders convened to pursue a pathway for peace in Ukraine makes reference to Russia’s “war” against Kyiv and urges that Ukraine’s territorial integrity be respected, according to a copy of the document seen by Reuters.

“In particular, we reaffirm our commitment to refraining from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, the principles of sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of all states, including Ukraine, within their internationally recognised borders, including territorial waters, and the resolution of disputes through peaceful means as principles of international law,” the text of the draft communique read.

The final communique is due to be issued on Sunday at the conclusion of the two-day conference at the Buergenstock resort in central Switzerland. The draft was dated 13 June.

The Swiss government has said it hopes the final summit declaration will be supported unanimously by participants. The document tracked certain changes made to the draft.

The document also calls for the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to be restored to Ukrainian control and for Kyiv’s access to its Azov sea ports to be safeguarded.