UPDATE - Switzerland will support Ukraine's peace process: President

UPDATES WITH MORE REMARKS; ADDS MORE DETAILS IN DECK

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

BERN, Switzerland (AA) - Switzerland will support Ukraine's proposed peace process, Swiss Confederation President Viola Amherd said on Monday, a day after the Ukrainian president reiterated a peace formula he first laid out in November 2022.

Amherd's remarks came in a joint press conference in Bern alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

She also said that Switzerland is ready to and will organize a high-level conference "to make the peace process a success."

The Swiss president also announced that the country will allocate 1.5 billion francs ($1.7 billion) to support Ukraine from 2025 to 2028.

For his part, Zelenskyy underlined that Kyiv and Bern discussed "a new long-term support program."

"I am grateful to President Viola Amherd for agreeing that our teams will begin joint work tomorrow on preparations for the global peace summit at the level of leaders in Switzerland," he said, adding that this summit could provide the momentum for what is already accomplished.

He emphasized that both the peace process and peace summit would be open to "all countries in the world that support Ukraine’s sovereignty."

The Ukrainian president further said that Kyiv wants Beijing to be involved not only in the peace formula but also in the summit due to the “significant role” it plays in the world.

Commenting on the fourth national security advisors meeting on Zelenskyy's proposal at the Davos World Economic Forum on Sunday, Peskov said the talks are “conversations for the sake of conversation” and cannot achieve a result because Russia is not present.

Zelenskyy's formula, made up of 10 conditions, was laid out at the November 2022 G-20 summit in Indonesia, with its final step being signing a peace accord. It also focuses on issues such as nuclear safety and food and energy security.

The proposal received immediate backlash from Russia as the Kremlin said on Monday that discussions on the peace formula are “devoid of prospects for any result.”

“Without our participation, of course, any discussions are possible, but they are devoid of prospects for any result,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in a press briefing in Moscow.

Russia’s war on Ukraine began in February 2022, nearly two years ago. With signs of a stalemate, there also seems to be growing reluctance among some allies of Ukraine to continue funding its defense.