00:00 Saudi Arabia is all set to host Ukraine, the United States, some European countries and
00:06 major developing countries for peace talks on the Russia-Ukraine war on August 5 and
00:11 6 in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah.
00:14 India has also confirmed its active participation in this much-anticipated peace summit, saying
00:20 that it is in line with her position that dialogue and diplomacy is the only way forward.
00:25 The summit comes when there seems to be no end to the stalemate between Russia and Ukraine
00:29 and drone warfare between the two countries are becoming new normal.
00:34 Russia has not been invited for the talks but it says that it will indeed be keeping
00:38 a very close watch on this summit where Ukraine would be seeking to garner support for its
00:42 10-point peace plan proposed last year.
00:45 The most crucial question is whether this peace summit would be able to achieve anything
00:50 substantial, whether the world would be able to thaw the ice between Russia and Ukraine.
00:56 While both Ukraine and Russia have signalled their openness to talk on global platforms,
01:01 they squarely reject what peace would look like for the other.
01:04 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to hold his position that peace negotiations
01:09 cannot happen without the withdrawal of Russian troops and that Ukraine should be in the driver's
01:14 seat and define its own terms of peace.
01:17 The 10-point peace plan that Zelensky is promoting since last year's G20 summit involves the
01:23 withdrawal of Russian troops and restoring Ukraine's territorial integrity as per its
01:27 1991 borders post the breakdown of the Soviet Union and reaffirming it according to the
01:33 UN Charter besides prosecuting war crimes committed by Russia.
01:38 Russia which has rejected the plan and is unwilling to cede any of the captured territory
01:43 in Ukraine has said that any negotiations should happen factoring in new realities indicating
01:49 redrawn borders including the territories it has annexed.
01:53 Since last year, however, multiple countries and blocs have shown willingness to become
01:57 mediators between the two parties offering their own roadmaps for peace.
02:02 While no plan has yet been accepted by both Russia and Ukraine, it has highlighted strategic
02:06 attempts at mediation by influential players in other parts of the globe as the West's
02:11 current position remains that of supporting Kiev militarily.
02:15 The sense in the air is that this would be just another measure of tokenism and perhaps
02:20 an effective and lasting compromise would not be feasible in this summit.
02:24 While observers are not expecting an overall breakthrough from the talks when it comes
02:27 to achieving peace in protracted conflict, it is being seen as a constructive way of
02:32 promoting third-party mediation by players apart from the West and of bringing to the
02:37 table both the West's non-aligned countries of the Global South which have refused to
02:41 isolate Russia.
02:43 Saudi Arabia maintains close ties with Moscow and is a part of the influential oil cartel
02:48 OPEC Plus.
02:49 It has also drawn criticism for cutting oil outputs and driving out prices at a time when
02:54 supplies from Russia face sanctions.
02:57 Analysts also point out other hindrances to current peace negotiations.
03:02 While some countries have suggested a ceasefire, Ukraine does not trust Russia to uphold it
03:07 also believing that any break from the battlefield would give Russia time to recoup and come
03:12 back with more force.
03:13 Before any sort of negotiated end to the conflict, Ukraine is also demanding a long-term security
03:19 plan from the West or NATO keeping in mind that Russia would continue to be its neighbour
03:24 while the latter's rationale behind launching the offensive was the extension of military
03:28 alliances in its neighbourhood.
03:30 So in all likelihood, the summit might not be able to achieve anything concrete.
03:35 More clear picture would emerge only after the summit concludes.
03:46 [BLANK_AUDIO]
