Peace Summit in Switzerland: analysis and need for political manoeuvres

Some preliminary conclusions from the summit:

• The Peace Summit in Switzerland predictably provided a lot of food for thought. Summing up the preliminary results, we can say that concrete achievements, apart from declarations, are objectively quite conditional and limited.
• The world is not Ukraine-centric, and we should have realised this reality back in 2014, and if not, then with the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. This war is our struggle, and it hurts us more than anyone else. No one is living it like we are.

The need for political manoeuvring

At the summit, there were statements from Saudi Arabia and Turkey that, frankly, do not meet our interests. The absence of condemnation of Russia's crimes and the position of 'reconciliation' look cynical and unfair. However, this does not mean that we should give up. The geopolitical situation forces us to continue playing this political game with a confident 'poker face.'

Negotiation tactics

If someone wants the Kremlin to sit down at the negotiating table, we have to pretend to support such a political consensus (we are doing it now). But at the same time, we must constantly remind ourselves that the arrest warrant for Putin issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague on 17 March 2023 casts doubt on this possibility even in theory. After all, the civilised world cannot ignore international law that condemns crimes, even under the pretext of a peace summit.

As we continue to communicate with China and other countries, we must continue to promote our interests in a language they understand, including on practical issues of prisoner exchange and security of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. This should at least partially put their narratives to the political test.

Next steps:

• The Peace Summit is an important informational and political event, which, based on its results, also has an impact on the practical support of the participating countries. Our position for the next year should be stronger. Our main narrative remains the same: only a strong Ukraine with powerful, high-precision weapons can guarantee peace. This is the only way to ensure security and make the negotiating table a reality, not just a declaration.
• The next parallel course of action on the part of our state should be the policy of establishing a European security bloc together with the UK. We have a great prospect in this area, which, if successfully implemented, will significantly advance us in the future towards NATO membership. It is also important to involve other countries that share our values and vision of security in the region in this initiative.
• To sum up: we need to use political manoeuvring, to maintain dialogue with all countries, even those who are not always on our side. But at the same time, we need to relentlessly promote our interests in order to achieve peace on our terms. Our conditions will become real when we increase parity in strikes on military targets in the territory of the Russian Federation, thus destroying the ability to resourcefully support military escalation and occupation of our territories. 

Source

About the author. Oleksandr Antoniuk, political expert.

The editors do not always share the opinions expressed by the authors of the blogs.