More Than 80 Nations Back Talks to Ease Path to Peace in Ukraine

Scores of countries at a two-day summit in Switzerland joined Ukraine on Sunday in calling for “dialogue between all parties” to end the war with Russia. But Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, said he remained steadfast in opposing any negotiations that could require his country to cede territory.

The summit over the weekend drew dignitaries from about 90 countries to a Swiss Alpine resort; Russia was not invited and, because of that, China and Brazil declined to participate.

At the end of the meeting, most of the delegations signed on to a statement of shared principles like promoting prisoner exchanges and nuclear safety.

They also said that “further engagement of the representatives of all parties” was necessary to proceed, a vague formulation underscoring the lack of common ground on the biggest question hanging over the gathering: When, and how, should Ukraine and Russia seek to negotiate peace?

With the two countries locked in their third year of all-out war and with no clear path to military victory for either, some world leaders are calling for negotiations and compromise between the warring sides. India, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey and others repeated that message at the summit.

But Mr. Zelensky has long argued that a lasting peace in Ukraine can be achieved only with Russia’s full withdrawal. He told reporters on Sunday that once the international community formulated a peace plan, building on the conclusions of the summit, “then this approved plan will be passed to representatives of the Russian Federation.”