On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused China of trying to prevent other countries from participating in the Ukrainian peace summit, which will be held on June 15-16 in Switzerland. But his criticism did not stop there. Although he is grateful that US President Joe Biden has allowed the use of American weapons against targets in Russia, he says that this is “not enough.”
“The world has to be resilient, it has to be strong, and it has to put pressure on Russia,” Zelensky said at the Shangri-La Dialogo Defense and Security Forum in Singapore. “There’s no other way to stop [Vladimir] He added: “Putin – only diplomatic isolation, a strong Ukrainian army, and that all countries of the world do not seek to achieve a balance between Ukraine and Russia, but rather defend international justice and law.”
On the sidelines of the forum, Zelensky expressed his disappointment that several world leaders have not yet confirmed their attendance at the summit in Switzerland – without mentioning China or the United States (Biden has not yet said whether he will attend). For Beijing’s part, Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said that the summit should also be attended by Russia, considering that without that it would be “difficult” to play a “major role in restoring peace.”
The Ukrainian president told reporters that China supports Russia’s efforts to prevent some countries from participating in the peace summit: “Unfortunately, Russia, using Chinese influence in the region, using Chinese diplomats as well, is doing everything in its power to obstruct the peace summit. It is unfortunate that a large, independent and powerful country like China has become a tool in Putin’s hands. Asia needs to know what is happening in Ukraine. “We need the support of Asian countries.”
In Singapore, Zelensky met with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. On the social network
Zelensky said he was grateful to Biden for allowing US-supplied weapons to be used against targets in Russia, near the Kharkiv border regions. “Is this enough? No,” he said, claiming that Russia is launching its attacks “quietly,” from certain air bases, knowing that Ukraine “cannot respond” because it does not have permission to do so.
Nine people were injured on Sunday in Ukrainian attacks on targets in Russia’s Belgorod and Kursk regions near the border. Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram: “Six civilians were injured in the bombing of the city of Shibykino.” All six were reportedly injured by shrapnel.
Ukraine claims that it is striking military targets from which Russia launched drone attacks that destroyed the country’s energy sector infrastructure. For example, the Dnipro plant will be in a critical condition after being subjected to attacks in Ukraine on Friday and Saturday night.
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