JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, May 19 (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky on Friday urged Arab leaders meeting at a summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to back his peace initiative to end the war in Ukraine.
Volodimir Zelensky, who is making his first trip to Saudi Arabia as head of state, and will then travel to the G7 summit in Japan, said in a speech that delegates would each receive the text of the ten-point peace plan prepared by Kyiv, and asked them to work with Ukraine directly, without intermediaries.
“I invite all those who respect peace to join in the implementation of the peace formula and thus reduce hostility, wars, suffering and evil,” the Ukrainian president said.
“Russia is weak, we beat her when she had more weapons in her hands. Her aggressiveness does not come from strength but from the understanding that the time of empires is over.”
The president said the Ukrainian peace formula could benefit others, for example through the Black Sea Grains Initiative, which allowed Ukraine, a major exporter, to continue deliveries, including to Arab League countries.
The United Nations and Turkey negotiated this agreement last July in order to contribute to the fight against a world food crisis aggravated by the invasion of Ukraine by Moscow in February 2022. The agreement, renewed several times since, has just be extended by two months, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Wednesday.
In addition to food security, the Ukrainian peace plan requires Russia to withdraw all its troops from Ukrainian territory, calls for the release of all Ukrainian prisoners of war and calls for the restoration of security at the Zaporizhia nuclear power station occupied by the Russia.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman told the summit that his kingdom was ready to mediate between Russia and Ukraine. (Report Olena Harmash, French version Nathan Vifflin, edited by Jean-Stéphane Brosse)
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