Ukraine peace summit says 鈥榙ialogue between all parties鈥� needed to end war

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, center, leads other officials during the plenary session of the Summit on Peace in Ukraine in Stansstad near Lucerne, Switzerland on June 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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  • More than 90 countries had gathered in the Swiss resort of Burgenstock for the summit
  • Moscow was not invited and has rejected the summit as 鈥榓bsurd鈥� and pointless

BURGENSTOCK, Switzerland: Dozens of countries said Sunday that Ukraine鈥檚 鈥渢erritorial integrity鈥� should be respected in any peace deal to end the war, as they said 鈥渄ialogue between all parties鈥� would be necessary for a lasting settlement.
In a final communique issued at the end of a major two-day diplomatic summit in Switzerland, the vast majority of countries also backed a call for the full exchange of captured soldiers and return of deported Ukrainian children.
But not all attendees backed the document, with India, 黑料社区 and the United Arab Emirates among those not included in a list of supporting states displayed on screens at the summit.
鈥淲e believe that reaching peace requires the involvement of and dialogue between all parties,鈥� the document stated.
It added: 鈥淲e reaffirm our commitment to ... the principles of sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of all states, including Ukraine, within their internationally recognized borders.鈥�
More than 90 countries had gathered in the Swiss resort of Burgenstock for the summit, dedicated to discussing Kyiv鈥檚 proposals for a route out of the conflict.
Moscow was not invited and has rejected the summit as 鈥渁bsurd鈥� and pointless.
Kyiv had worked hard to secure attendance from countries that maintain warm relations with Russia.
The final document also called for all prisoners of war to be released in a 鈥渃omplete exchange鈥� and for all Ukrainian children who had been 鈥渄eported and unlawfully displaced鈥� to be returned to Ukraine.
Kyiv accuses Russia of abducting almost 20,000 children from parts of the east and south of the country that its forces took control of.
Working groups at the summit also addressed the issues of global food security and nuclear safety.
鈥淔ood security must not be weaponized in any way,鈥� the declaration stated, adding that access to ports in the Black and Azov Seas was 鈥渃ritical鈥� for global food supply.
And the countries also called for Ukraine to have 鈥渇ull sovereign control鈥� over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
Located in the south of Ukraine, the facility is Europe鈥檚 largest nuclear energy site and has been controlled by Russian forces since early in the war.