World counting on India for Ukraine truce: Swiss diplomat

NEW DELHI: India is a 'friend of the world' and the global community expects it to contribute significantly in bringing peace to war-torn Ukraine, Swiss state secretary of foreign affairs Alexandre Fasel said on Friday as Switzerland prepares to host a major summit next month to end the conflict.
The Swiss diplomat held wide-ranging talks with Indian interlocutors and extended an invitation to the PM for the summit that is aimed at charting a course for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.Switzerland has extended invites to over 160 countries for the summit on June 15 and 16 at head of state and head of government level.
"India is a friend of the world. India is a friend of peace. India has great experience in conflict transformation and peace promotion. The expectation really is that we can work together and count on India's support," Fasel said. India has not decided on attending the summit yet in view of the ongoingelections, he added.
Fasel also referred to India's close ties with Russia as well as Ukraine and hoped that New Delhi would play a role in helping the summit chart a roadmap for peace. "India is a leader of the Global South. India, in diplomatic terms worldwide, has clout and influence which it duly demonstrated during its G20 presidency," he said.
Asked how Switzerland expects the summit to be successful in absence of Russia and China, Fasel said Beijing has not yet communicated whether it will attend or not.
"What is important to realise is that this would be a process. We cannot expect a complete peace agreement at this Swiss conference; rather it will be a process that shall lead towards a peace process and negotiated settlement of the conflict. We are very much thinking in terms of process," he said. When asked whether India would attend the summit, ministry of external affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: "We have received an invitation from the Swiss side. We are yet to decide on our participation."