Viola Amherd

LONDON - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday in London at the opening of the fourth European Political Community summit.

"A cordial meeting with Olaf Scholz. We will see each other in Belgrade soon," Vucic wrote in an Instagram post.

Representatives from 80 countries and 4 organizations jointly called for Ukraine's "territorial integrity" to be the foundation of any peace agreement to end the war. This message, included in a joint communique, marked the conclusion of the two-day peace meeting in Switzerland. Notably, Russia was absent, having not been invited.

"Bulgaria remains fully committed to the strong and unified response of NATO, the EU, and the international democratic community to Russian military aggression against Ukraine," wrote acting Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev on the Facebook page of the Council of Ministers.

Switzerland is hosting a two-day peace conference focusing on Ukraine at the luxurious alpine resort of Bürgenstock near Lucerne. The conference, titled the "Ukraine Peace Summit," is the first of its kind and will take place today and tomorrow.

Switzerland is undertaking a major security operation around this weekend's summit on Ukraine, aiming to ward off not only physical threats but also cyberattacks and misinformation.

An helicopter of Swiss Air force takes to in Obburgen next to the luxury Burgenstock resort, central Switzerland on June 10, 2024, ahead of the Ukraine peace summit on June 15-16

Ahead of the first summit on peace in Ukraine, Kiev said Tuesday it wanted Russia to attend a second summit, to receive an internationally agreed roadmap towards ending the conflict.

Nearly 90 countries and organizations, half from Europe, have confirmed attending the Swiss-hosted Ukraine peace summit over the weekend despite Russia's refusal to participate in the conference, Switzerland's president said on Monday.