(Bloomberg) -- Switzerland will host a high level conference on June 15-16 to consolidate global support for a peace framework advocated by Ukraine that would end the war with Russia.

The aim of the gathering is to “create a common understanding” on how to achieve “a comprehensive, just and lasting peace for Ukraine in accordance with international law and the United Nations charter,” the Swiss government said in a statement on Wednesday.

“Switzerland held talks with G7 member states, the European Union and representatives of the Global South such as China, India, South Africa, Brazil, Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia,” the government said. “There is currently sufficient international support for a high-level conference to launch the peace process.” More than 120 countries will be invited.

It’s not clear at this stage whether national leaders or lower level officials will participate in the conference. Another open question remains whether, and at what level, China will attend, given the influence Ukraine’s allies say Beijing exerts on Moscow more than two years into the war. 

“China replied more positively than we could have ever expected,” Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said at a press conference in Bern on Wednesday. “We received positive signals from the great powers of the world.”

While Russia’s participation is not envisaged at this stage, the conference should also lay out a “concrete roadmap for Russia’s participation in the peace process.” 

Cassis met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in January to discuss the Swiss peace effort. “The expectation that they will participate in the process later on was at the core of my meeting with Lavrov,” Cassis said during the press conference.

Mountain Resort

The conference will be held in the mountain resort of the Buergenstock overlooking lake Lucerne and will cost as much as 10 million Swiss francs ($11 million). 

It comes after four preparatory meetings in the past twelve months at the level of national-security advisers. So far, Beijing only attended one of those meetings. 

The Chinese government said this week that it hasn’t sought to benefit from the fighting in Ukraine. Bloomberg reported earlier that the US is is warning allies that Beijing has stepped up its support for Moscow, including by providing geospatial intelligence, to help it in its war machine.

During a visit by Lavrov to Beijing on Tuesday, Russia and China agreed to start a dialogue on Eurasian security with the aim of “double counteracting” the European-Atlantic alliance led by the US.

While several countries have been pushing for Russia to attend the meeting, Kyiv wants the meeting of delegations to reach a broad agreement on the key principles that would form the basis of any future settlement before engaging with Moscow. 

Ukraine has proposed a peace formula calling for respecting the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, the withdrawal of Russian troops as well as ensuring nuclear and food security. Cassis said the meeting wants to build upon this approach, adding though that it won’t be “exclusively at the core” of the conference.

Switzerland, which has historically remained neutral in European conflicts, is seeking to bring countries to the table to help end the war, although it’s struggled in those efforts so far. The country is trying to revive its role as a mediator in international conflicts after siding with the West in imposing sanctions against Russia in the aftermath of the 2022 invasion.

(Updates with minister quotes, details throughout)

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