Zelenskyy: Putin will applaud if Biden skips Peace Summit on Ukraine
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
The visit of United States President Joe Biden is important for the Peace Summit and other leaders who are looking at Washington's response, says President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a joint press conference with Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo.
According to Zelenskyy, Ukraine is currently waiting for a response on the participation of several African countries, but positive signals are already received.
'Putin will applaud'
The president stressed the importance of Biden's visit. He explains that the United States supports the conference, but "he does not know at what level," which is not the strongest decision.
"I believe that the Peace Summit and other leaders who are looking at the US response need Biden. Him not showing... Putin (Vladimir Putin, Russian leader - ed.) will applaud, and he will give a standing ovation," he added.
Not just Biden
Ukraine also expects a response from China and Brazil.
"We are open to everyone, everyone's opinion is important. I said about the great powers, but believe me, every voice is very important," the president added.
Peace Summit
The Peace Summit on the war in Ukraine will take place in Switzerland on June 15-16. Russia was not invited to the meeting, but it will have the opportunity to participate in subsequent meetings.
Zelenskyy recently publicly invited Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to attend the summit.
According to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning, there is currently no decision on China's participation. At the same time, Beijing supports "a conference that will be recognized by both Russia and Ukraine."
According to Bloomberg, Biden may skip the summit for a planned campaign fundraiser in California.
