On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke before politicians and reporters at the NATO summit in Washington, DC, thanking the United States for its continued support and warning that more will need to be done to end the war. Among his proposals was the holding of a second Peace Summit, similar to that which was held last month in Switzerland, before the election in November.
Sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg following Zelensky's speech that this time around, he hopes Russia will attend. In June, Putin responded to the Peace Summit by holding his own gathering in North Korea, which Zelensky referred to as a "war summit."
"We held the first Peace Summit attended by 101 countries and international organizations," he said. "I am grateful to the US for participating. Putin, in response, held his own summit – a war summit, in Pyongyang, in pair with Kim Jong Un. Just to have more artillery, missiles, and mines so that Russia can hold on at least until the end of the year. Although he does receive weapons, Putin still shows how much weaker the conspiracy of dictators is – compared to the power of the free world."
Zelensky said the western world "must react firmly," adding, "We must and can organize the second Peace Summit this year based on the Peace Formula – even more powerful, and truly decisive."
He went on to note that Ukraine "need[s] that support from the US," warning against waiting until after the election. "It's time to step out of the shadows, to make strong decisions work, to act and not to wait for November or any other month," he said.
As Bloomberg reports, while Ukrainian officials confirmed a second summit would take place, their US counterparts expressed doubt that they would be able to convince Russia to show up at the table.
