Hungary unsure about presence at Global Peace Summit, citing Russia's absence at conference
Budapest has not yet decided on its participation in the Global Peace Summit to be held in Switzerland. According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Péter Szijjártó, such hesitation is caused by the fact that "not all sides of the war" will be present at the event.
Hungary respects Switzerland's efforts to achieve peace, but has doubts about whether a peace conference makes sense if there are "no warring parties" at it.
"If both sides of the war are not represented, I think it is a legitimate question whether the whole conference makes sense from the point of view of the ultimate goal, namely, the pursuit of peace. Therefore, we believe that a peace conference makes real sense and offers the greatest hope for peace, if both parties are sitting at the table," said the Hungarian diplomat.
Szijjártó added that Hungary "has nothing to do" with the Russo-Ukrainian war: and although, in his opinion, Europe tends to perceive this war as "theirs", Budapest does not feel that way.
On April 24, 2024, Zelenskyy said that Russia wants to disrupt the Global Peace Summit and has a plan to do it.
On May 14, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that the end of the war in Ukraine will not be discussed at the event in Switzerland.
On May 21, Volodymyr Zelenskyy named three main points that will be on the agenda at the Global Peace Summit.
On June 2, the president announced that 160 countries of the world have already confirmed their participation in the summit.