(Brasilia) Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva reiterated on Monday that he was in favor of peace negotiations in Ukraine if they included Russia, during a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
“On the subject of Ukraine, President Lula reiterated his defense of peace negotiations involving both sides of the conflict,” the Brazilian presidency said in a statement, specifying that Lula had “received a call” from Mr. Putin in in the morning, at a time when a conference on peace in Ukraine which will take place next weekend is being prepared in Switzerland, without Moscow and at the initiative of Kyiv.
The left-wing president of Brazil recalled that this position was “in accordance” with a joint statement with China released on May 23.
In this text, the two countries said “to support an international peace conference held at an appropriate time recognized by both Russia and Ukraine, with equal participation of all parties, as well as a fair discussion of all peace plans.”
The Brazilian president will travel to Europe this week for a meeting of the International Labor Organization (ILO) on Thursday in Geneva, before taking part in the G7 Summit in Italy.
But he will not participate in the summit on Ukraine which will be held Saturday and Sunday in Burgenstok, Switzerland.
Russia, which requires Kyiv’s recognition of the annexation of the territories it occupies to negotiate, has repeatedly affirmed that organizing a summit without its participation makes “no sense”, and has castigated the “formula of peace” put forward by President Volodymyr Zelensky, which notably provides for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory, financial reparations and the creation of a special court to judge Russian officials.
“Our position is that any peace discussion must involve both parties. The one-party model has already been tried during this conflict, without result,” a Brazilian diplomatic source told AFP.
The president of Latin America’s largest country has repeatedly sparked controversy by saying responsibility for the conflict in Ukraine was shared, even as he condemned the Russian invasion.
The Brazilian presidency also indicated that Mr. Putin had “expressed his solidarity with the victims of the floods” which devastated the south of Brazil, leaving more than 170 dead.