WORLD BRIEFING: June 16, 2024

The leaders of Italy and Germany have strongly rejected ceasefire terms laid out by Vladimir Putin to stop the war in Ukraine, as scores of countries gathered at a two-day summit in Switzerland to discuss ending the conflict. Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called the Russian president's plan "propaganda" which effectively suggested that Ukraine "must withdraw from Ukraine". German Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed it as a "dictatorial peace". A draft declaration issued at the summit reaffirms Ukraine's territorial integrity and unambiguously rejects any nuclear threat against the country. On Friday, Mr Putin claimed he would agree to a ceasefire if Ukraine withdrew troops from four regions which Russia partially occupies and claims to have annexed. Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, told the BBC at the Swiss summit that there would be "no compromise on independence, sovereignty or territorial integrity". Mr Putin revealed his terms ahead of the two-day Summit on Peace in Ukraine which is aimed at discussing the basic principles for ending the war. More than 90 countries and global institutions are attending the event. It is the biggest gathering for Ukraine since the full-scale invasion. - BBC

During the Summit, participants will discuss three issues: nuclear safety, food security, and the release of all prisoners and deportees. Separately, Scholz tweeted from Switzerland: “It is true, peace in Ukraine can’t be achieved without involving Russia. But let us not forget that, as we speak, Russia continues to relentlessly wage its brutal war. We all know: Russia could end this war today once it ceases its onslaught and withdraws troops from Ukraine. With today’s Summit on Peace in Ukraine we can enter into a truly global exchange on principles for a just, lasting and comprehensive peace. We should jointly seek to achieve a framework and roadmap for concrete steps in this direction.” At the start of the summit, Zelensky said: “I believe that we will witness history being made here at the summit. May a just peace be established as soon as possible.”

Hundreds of anti-Israel protesters descended on President Biden’s star-studded Los Angeles campaign fundraiser on Saturday night, where he’s expected to haul in a record-setting $28 million. The demonstrators attempted to block the entrance and disrupt the ritzy event at the Peacock Theater in downtown LA. Protesters waved Palestinian flags and chanted “From the sea to the river, Palestine will live forever,” video posted on social media shows. Several of the protesters donned shirts that read “cease fire now” and “not in our name.” - NY Post

Russia's efforts to subvert the coming presidential elections in Moldova go beyond sowing disinformation, according to U.S. officials, who charge that the Kremlin is actively supporting political candidates and political parties willing to espouse pro-Russia policies. The warning, from a senior State Department official, comes a day after the U.S., Canada and Britain issued a statement publicly accusing Moscow of "currently supporting candidates for Moldova's presidency." But in a virtual briefing with reporters on Friday, U.S. Special Envoy Jamie Rubin said Moscow's designs on Moldova go even deeper. "To be as frank as I can, we're talking about funding parties, we're talking about funding outside groups," Rubin said, in response to a question from VOA. "They have devoted, we believe, a particularly egregious, pernicious plan to act against Moldova." - VOA

China has organised seminars and training courses for officials in African and Latin American countries, aimed at promoting its single-party system and President Xi Jinping’s worldview, a report said this week. A central pillar of Xi’s rule has been the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive infrastructure project that China uses to expand its clout overseas by handing out onerous loans to developing countries. A report released Thursday by a Washington-based think tank details efforts to promote single-party rule and Xi’s thinking to BRI partners in parts of Africa, Latin America and beyond, drawing on hundreds of publicly available documents from China’s commerce ministry. The documents “clearly highlight aspects of (China’s) authoritarian model as central to the blueprint of successful development that others can emulate”, wrote the author of the Atlantic Council report, nonresident fellow Niva Yau. Among the initiatives listed was a seminar held online for presidential advisers and cabinet-level officials in developing countries, aimed at expanding “the international influence of the… governance system of China”. According to the ministry document cited by the report, the seminar held in June 2021 sought “to introduce President Xi Jinping’s thought on national governance, China’s current political system, political life and the features of decision-making process for fundamental policies”. - HKFP

The Black Sea Security Forum, dedicated to the security issues of the region and seaports, has just concluded in Odesa. The event - the first of its kind - gathered influential figures who focused on pressing issues related to the war in Ukraine, particularly in the Odesa region and the southern areas. The forum was organized by Member of the Ukrainian Parliament Oleksiy Honcharenko, the Odesa City Council, Lord Michael Ashcroft, among others. Special guests included Bridget Brink, the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, 28th Prime Minister of Australia Tony Abbott, Lord Ashcroft, Moldova Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu, among others. Participants discussed urgent security issues in the region and outlined further steps for resolution. During a Saturday panel, Polish politician Michał Kamiński laid out a radical idea for Ukraine’s peace plan strategy - saying it’s not enough to stop Putin on the battlefield. Ukraine should put at top of list of demands free and fair elections in Russia and Belarus. “It’ll show we’re not Russophobes,” he said. It was pointed out during the event that some 10 million Ukrainians are displaced overseas. For many to come back the fight against corruption -much of it inherited from Soviet times - and institutional capacity building has to happen alongside the fight against Russian aggression, opposition MP Yulia Klymenko said. But with its very well educated and trained labour force, Ukraine will be challenged attracting asylum seekers back. Many European countries seek to keep them as they’re valuable workers, she said.