Zelensky eyes ‘history being made’ at Swiss-hosted Ukraine peace conference, but Russia’s absent

Zelensky eyes ‘history being made’ at Swiss-hosted Ukraine peace conference, but Russia’s absent
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Swiss Federal President Viola Amherd shake hands during the Summit on peace in Ukraine, in Stansstad near Lucerne, Switzerland on Jun. 15, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 15 June 2024
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Zelensky eyes ‘history being made’ at Swiss-hosted Ukraine peace conference, but Russia’s absent

Zelensky eyes ‘history being made’ at Swiss-hosted Ukraine peace conference, but Russia’s absent
  • Zelensky said: “I believe that we will witness history being made here at the summit”
  • Swiss officials hosting the conference say more than 50 heads of state and government will join the gathering

OBBÜRGEN, Switzerland: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday predicted “history being made” at the Swiss-hosted conference which aims to plot out the first steps toward peace in Ukraine even though experts and critics say little substance or few big breakthroughs are expected because Russia is not attending.
The presidents of Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Kenya and Somalia joined dozens of Western heads of state and government and other leaders and high-level envoys at the meeting, in hopes that Russia — which is waging war on Ukraine — could join in one day.
In a brief statement to reporters alongside Swiss President Viola Amherd, Zelensky already sought to cast the gathering as a success, saying: “We have succeeded in bringing back to the world the idea that joint efforts can stop war and establish a just peace.”
“I believe that we will witness history being made here at the summit,” he said.
Swiss officials hosting the conference say more than 50 heads of state and government will join the gathering at the Bürgenstock resort overlooking Lake Lucerne. Some 100 delegations including European bodies and the United Nations will be on hand.
Who will show up – and who will not – has become one of the key stakes of a meeting that critics say will be useless without the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s government, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and is pushing ahead with the war.
As US Vice President Kamala Harris arrived at the venue, shuttle buses rumbled up a mountain road that snaked up to the site — at times with traffic jams — with police along the route checking journalists’ IDs and helicopters ferrying in VIPs buzzed overhead.
Meanwhile, Türkiye and Saudi Arabia have dispatched their foreign ministers while key developing countries like Brazil, an observer at the event, India and South Africa will be represented at lower levels.
China, which backs Russia, is joining scores of countries that are sitting out the conference, many of whom have more pressing issues than the bloodiest conflict in far-away Europe since World War II. Beijing says any peace process needs to have the participation of both Russia and Ukraine, and has floated its own ideas for peace.
Last month, China and Brazil agreed to six “common understandings” on a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis, asking other countries to endorse them and play a role in promoting peace talks.
The six points include an agreement to “support an international peace conference held at a proper time that is recognized by both Russia and Ukraine, with equal participation of all parties as well as fair discussion of all peace plans.”
Zelensky has recently led a diplomatic push to draw in participants to the Swiss summit.
Russian troops who now control nearly a quarter of Ukrainian land in the east and south have made some territorial gains in recent months. When talk of a Swiss-hosted peace initiative began last summer, Ukrainian forces had recently regained large swaths of territory, notably near the cities of southern Kherson and northern Kharkiv.
Against the battlefield backdrop and diplomatic strategizing, summit organizers have presented three agenda items: nuclear safety, such as at the Russia-controlled Zaporizhzhia power plant; humanitarian assistance and exchange of prisoners of war; and global food security — which has been disrupted at times due to impeded shipments through the Black Sea.
That to-do list, encapsulating some of the least controversial issues, is well short of proposals and hopes laid out by Zelensky in a 10-point peace formula in late 2022.
The plan includes ambitious calls, including the withdrawal of Russian troops from occupied Ukrainian territory, the cessation of hostilities and restoring Ukraine’s state borders with Russia, including Crimea.
Putin’s government, meanwhile, wants any peace deal to be built around a draft agreement negotiated in the early phases of the war that included provisions for Ukraine’s neutral status and limits on its armed forces, while delaying talks about Russia-occupied areas. Ukraine’s push over the years to join the NATO military alliance has rankled Moscow.
Ukraine is unable to negotiate from a position of strength, analysts say.
“The situation on the battlefield has changed dramatically,” said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, saying that although Russia “can’t achieve its maximalist objectives quickly through military means, but it’s gaining momentum and pushing Ukraine really hard.”
“So, a lot of countries that are coming to the summit would question whether the Zelensky peace formula still has legs,” he told reporters in a call Wednesday.
With much of the world’s focus recently on the war in Gaza and national elections in 2024, Ukraine’s backers want to return focus to Russia’s breach of international law and a restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
On Friday, Putin called the conference “just another ploy to divert everyone’s attention.”
The International Crisis Group, an advisory firm that works to end conflict, wrote this week that “absent a major surprise on the Bürgenstock,” the event is “unlikely to deliver much of consequence.”
“Nonetheless, the Swiss summit is a chance for Ukraine and its allies to underline what the UN General Assembly recognized in 2022 and repeated in its February 2023 resolution on a just peace in Ukraine: Russia’s all-out aggression is a blatant violation of international law,” it said.
Experts say they’ll be looking at the wording of any outcome document, and plans for the way forward. Swiss officials, aware of Russia’s reticence about the conference, have repeatedly said they hope Russia can join the process one day, as do Ukrainian officials.
“Most likely, the three items under review will be endorsed by the participants. But then the big question is ‘OK, what comes next?’” Gabuev said. “And I don’t think we have a very clear answer to that question yet.”
As leaders headed to the conference venue, the war raged on.
Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov of Russia’s southern Belgorod region, writing on social media, blamed Ukraine for shelling Friday that struck a five-story apartment building in the town of Shebekino, killing five people. There was no immediate comment from Kyiv.
In Ukraine, shelling killed at least three civilians and wounded 15 others on Friday and overnight, regional officials said. Gov. Oleh Syniehubov of the Kharkiv region, which has been the focus of a recent Russian offensive.


Germany’s Merz calls for western unity on Ukraine on eve of peace talks

Germany’s Merz calls for western unity on Ukraine on eve of peace talks
Updated 57 min 33 sec ago
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Germany’s Merz calls for western unity on Ukraine on eve of peace talks

Germany’s Merz calls for western unity on Ukraine on eve of peace talks
  • Merz said the West could not accept a dictated peace for Ukraine or a submission to the status quo achieved by Russian military forces
  • “Such a ceasefire can open a window in which peace negotiations become possible“

BERLIN: Germany’s new Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Wednesday urged the West not to be divided on Ukraine and said he was working to ensure unity between allies in Europe and the United States on how to end the war.

In his first major speech to parliament since taking office last week, Merz said the West could not accept a dictated peace for Ukraine or a submission to the status quo achieved by Russian military forces.

He was speaking a day before Ukrainian and Russian delegates could meet for peace talks in Istanbul, more than three years after the start of the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two.

After winning elections in February, Merz has promised to give Germany a bigger role on the global stage and beef up its military through more defense spending. Though he has publicly castigated US President Donald Trump’s administration as an unreliable ally, in Wednesday’s speech he thanked Trump for his support in pushing for a ceasefire in Ukraine.

“Such a ceasefire can open a window in which peace negotiations become possible,” he told parliament.

“It is of paramount importance that the political West does not allow itself to be divided, and therefore I will make every effort to continue to achieve the greatest possible unity between our European and American partners.”

“This terrible war and its outcome will not only determine the fate of Ukraine,” he added. “The outcome of this war will determine whether law and order will continue to prevail in Europe and the world, or whether tyranny, military force, and the sheer right of the strongest will prevail.”

Still, strengthening the German military is a top priority, Merz said.

“The government will provide all the financial resources that the Bundeswehr needs in order to become the strongest conventional army in Europe,” he said.

In his speech, Merz took blunt aim at Russia, accusing it of involvement in state-sponsored killings and poisoning in European cities, cyberattacks and the destruction of infrastructure, including undersea cables.

Merz was speaking as German prosecutors announced the arrest of three Ukrainians for their suspected involvement in the shipment of exploding parcels, after a series of fires at European courier depots pointed to suspected Russian sabotage.

Security officials told Reuters the exploding parcels were part of a test run for a Russian plot to trigger explosions on cargo flights to the United States. Russia has denied this and other accusations by Western countries of sabotage plots.

The growing closeness between Russia and China was also concerning, Merz added.

In a wide-ranging speech, Merz also rattled through his government’s policy priorities, from boosting growth in Europe’s largest economy to hardening its stance on migration. He stressed the latter would be done within the parameters of EU agreements, seeking to dispel fears that Germany would act unilaterally.


Indonesia develops AI system to help diagnose malaria

Indonesia develops AI system to help diagnose malaria
Updated 14 May 2025
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Indonesia develops AI system to help diagnose malaria

Indonesia develops AI system to help diagnose malaria
  • Indonesia’s malaria cases may be as high as 1.1m in 2024, WHO estimates show
  • AI-powered system could help reach patients in remote areas, Indonesian researchers say

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency is developing an artificial intelligence-powered system to help diagnose malaria under the country’s efforts to eliminate the disease by 2030.

Indonesia recorded over half a million malaria cases in 2024, but due to the lack of testing, the World Health Organization estimates that the actual number was at least twice higher.

“Our main goal is to create a computer-aided diagnosis system that can automatically recognize malaria status from blood smear images,” Anto Satriyo Nugroho, head of AI and cyber security at Indonesia’s national research agency, or BRIN, said in a statement.

Such a system would speed up confirmation of malaria, which to date is mostly done through microscopic examination.

“We are optimistic that sustainable AI research and development will create an important tool for diagnosis that will contribute significantly to eliminating malaria in Indonesia,” Nugroho added.

AI applications are rapidly gaining in popularity, including in medical care to improve disease diagnosis, treatment selection and clinical laboratory testing.

In 2020, a study published in Nature showed researchers from Google Health, and universities in the US and UK, reporting on an AI model that reads mammograms with fewer false positives and false negatives than human experts.

That algorithm has since been released for commercial use globally.

In Indonesia, BRIN researchers have been working with various local and foreign universities, the WHO as well as other UN agencies to speed up the country’s efforts in eliminating malaria.

An AI-powered system also opens up possibilities for remote diagnostics, which would enable healthcare workers to reach and assess patients in outlying areas.

Malaria is endemic in eastern parts of Indonesia, with around 90 percent of cases reported from the easternmost province of Papua, where healthcare access remains low due to challenging terrain and limited resources. 

“With the massive potential to increase accuracy in diagnosis and improve efficiency in healthcare services in endemic areas, BRIN is optimistic that AI technology will become a strategic partner in managing malaria cases nationally,” BRIN stated.

“AI cannot work on its own. Collaboration between tech experts and biomedical researchers is an absolute requirement for this technology to be reliable.”


New campaign against Israel-linked brands gains ground in India

New campaign against Israel-linked brands gains ground in India
Updated 14 May 2025
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New campaign against Israel-linked brands gains ground in India

New campaign against Israel-linked brands gains ground in India
  • First BDS-focused rally took place in the country last month
  • Campaigners say Indians join when they realize Palestinians are under colonial occupation

New Delhi: There were only a handful of students at the first BDS India rally last month, but the movement is now gaining ground across the country as more people are willing to join efforts to boycott products and companies linked to Israel.

While many grassroots groups have been organizing in India to protest Israel’s deadly onslaught on Gaza that began in October 2023, it is only recently that the efforts began to focus on advancing the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign.

The first such protest took place in Hyderabad on April 5 and similar rallies and public awareness meetings have since been held in 10 other Indian cities.

“For the last two months, we have been actively promoting the BDS movement in India ... we have been going to different neighborhoods, campuses, working-class areas and we are seeing that the common masses are very receptive,” Sreeja Dontireddy, BDS India coordinator, told Arab News on Wednesday.

“We began with maybe five to 10 people in each city or team. Now that number has definitely grown to much more than that, to around 20-25. And different people come to different campaigns. The teams are constantly growing because more and more people are volunteering to be part of the campaign.”

The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement is a global campaign launched in 2005 to pressure Israel to comply with international law and respect Palestinian rights.

It calls for the boycott of Israeli goods and institutions, divestment from companies complicit in violations of Palestinian rights, as well as sanctions against the Israeli state. BDS is inspired by the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and its goal is to end the occupation of Palestinian land and uphold the right of return for Palestinian refugees to their homeland.

Support for Palestine has always been an important part of India’s foreign policy even before Indian independence from British colonial rule in 1947.

Many years before the establishment of Israel, Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India’s freedom movement, had opposed a Jewish nation-state in Palestine, deeming it inhumane and wrong.

But a change in the Indian government’s stance has been visible over the past few years. During Israel’s deadly campaign in Gaza, India has even supplied it with weapons.

“Our country’s government might directly or indirectly support Israel, but that doesn’t mean that the people of India also must do so ... when we explain to them that this is a liberation struggle and Palestine is fighting for its independence, they are very receptive,” Dontireddy said.

“The people of Palestine are relentlessly fighting with whatever means they have. And this is a source of inspiration and awe for all of us. And it is our duty to stand by them. And BDS offers something operative to do in that instance, and it allows us also to create a tangible effect that will affect and injure the sort of hegemony that Israel enjoys.”

BDS India activists have been raising awareness about companies and products that have links to Israel. They approach people individually, in local neighborhoods, share their product lists with shopkeepers and have some of them place boycott-related stickers and materials on their displays.

They also organize rallies in front of international outlets featured on global boycott lists.

“People are clearly angry about what is happening in Palestine. They really want to do something,” said Swapnaja Limkar, a member of the BDS India movement in Pune.

“Initially, there were like 10 people. After a month or so, we have about 200 people in every protest. We have organized some boycott protests outside Starbucks, outside Domino’s Pizza, and are campaigning every day. We have gathered around 200 people who are in support of Palestine in Pune right now.”

The most recent BDS India protests took place on May 10 in front of Domino’s outlets in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad, Patna and Vijayawada.

“Not only physically, but also on social media, people have shown presence as well as support in larger numbers,” said Akriti Chaudhary from BDS India in Delhi.

“The movement has been growing steadily, and more and more people are joining the campaign ... we have suffered 200 years of colonialism. No one can understand better than us what it means. That’s why the Palestinian issue resonates with us, and we need to stand with the people of Palestine in this hour of crisis, as they face an existential threat from Zionist Israel.”


Kremlin blasts potential EU deployment of French nuclear bombers

Kremlin blasts potential EU deployment of French nuclear bombers
Updated 14 May 2025
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Kremlin blasts potential EU deployment of French nuclear bombers

Kremlin blasts potential EU deployment of French nuclear bombers
  • Russia, the world’s biggest nuclear power, possesses about 4,000 warheads and views France’s nuclear deterrence as a potential threat to its national security
  • The French president floated the idea during a TV appearance on Tuesday

MOSCOW: The possible deployment of French nuclear bombers across the EU will not enhance security on the continent, the Kremlin said Wednesday, after French President Emmanuel Macron said he was ready to discuss the issue.
“The proliferation of nuclear weapons on the European continent is something that will not add security, predictability, or stability to the European continent,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
The French president floated the idea during a TV appearance on Tuesday, comparing it to the United States’s nuclear umbrella policy that guarantees Washington would reciprocate if its allies come under nuclear attack.
“The Americans have the bombs on planes in Belgium, Germany, Italy, Turkiye,” Macron told TF1 television.
“We are ready to open this discussion. I will define the framework in a very specific way in the weeks and months to come.”
France is the EU’s only nuclear-armed nation.
Amid Russia’s offensive on Ukraine and US President Donald Trump’s calls on Europe to take more of the burden for its own defense, discussion is growing over extending Paris’s nuclear deterrent to the rest of the 27-member bloc.
Russia, the world’s biggest nuclear power, possesses about 4,000 warheads and views France’s nuclear deterrence as a potential threat to its national security.
“At present, the entire system of strategic stability and security is in a deplorable state for obvious reasons,” Peskov added.
Amid his offensive on Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has several times threatened nuclear escalation, drawing rebukes from the West over “reckless” rhetoric.


‘Albania belongs in EU,’ von der Leyen tells re-elected PM Rama

‘Albania belongs in EU,’ von der Leyen tells re-elected PM Rama
Updated 14 May 2025
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‘Albania belongs in EU,’ von der Leyen tells re-elected PM Rama

‘Albania belongs in EU,’ von der Leyen tells re-elected PM Rama
  • EU and French leaders congratulated Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama Wednesday after his party’s electoral victory

BRUSSELS: EU and French leaders congratulated Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama Wednesday after his party’s electoral victory, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailing his “great progress toward our Union.”
“Let’s keep working closely together on EU reforms. Albania belongs in the EU!” von der Leyen said on X. French President Emmanuel Macron also hailed Rama’s win, writing on X: “France will always stand alongside Albania on its European path.”