Kyiv says Saudi Arabia meeting a ‘step toward implementing Ukrainian peace initiatives'

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Kyiv on Sunday said that the weekend summit on ways to resolve the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah was “a step toward implementing Ukrainian peace initiatives.”

“The meeting in Jeddah was a step towards the practical implementation of peace initiatives proposed by Ukraine. Each state participating in the consultations has the opportunity to show leadership in global efforts for peace. And most of them have already defined their role in the implementation of certain points of the (Peace) Formula,” said a statement by the Ukrainian presidency.

The statement said that more than 40 countries were represented in Jeddah at the meeting held on the level of national security advisers and foreign policy officials, which is “almost three times as many as at the Copenhagen consultations.”

“This indicates the world's great interest in establishing a sustainable and lasting peace,” the Ukrainian presidency statement said, adding: “The parties agreed to continue working at various representative levels to establish a just and comprehensive peace.”

The statement also quoted Andriy Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office, who said that productive consultations were held on “the key principles on which a just and lasting peace should be built.”

He added: “We had an extremely honest, open conversation, during which representatives of each country could voice their position and vision. There were different views, but all the participants demonstrated their countries' commitment to the principles of the UN Charter, international law, and respect for the sovereignty and inviolability of the territorial integrity of states.

“And it is on these principles that President (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy's Peace Formula is built, which we have described in detail."

Without the participation of Russia, the two-day meeting in Jeddah began on Saturday, following a similar meeting held in the Danish capital Copenhagen in June.