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After Bürgenstock: what the summit left behind
Summary
A look back at the days around 18 June 2024, when the Swiss peace summit had just closed and the war, energy support and domestic debates continued.
What did Ukraine have to show for a two-day peace summit once it ended? On 18 June 2024, two days after the gathering closed, the question hung over a war that had carried on throughout.
The Global Peace Summit, dedicated to discussion of what Ukraine calls its Peace Formula, ended on 16 June 2024 at the Bürgenstock Resort in Switzerland. Formally the Summit on Peace in Ukraine, it had run for two days from 15 June and was hosted by the Swiss president, Viola Amherd. Representatives from 92 nations and eight international organisations attended. Russia did not take part. The Peace Formula is a diplomatic platform that Ukraine proposed to the international community to reach a just end to the war. The summit followed four earlier international meetings on the subject.
The fighting did not pause
On the same day the summit ended, 16 June, Russia claimed it had captured the village of Zahirne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The claim was a reminder that military operations continued alongside the diplomacy.
Support for the power grid
Also on 16 June, Norway announced it would give Ukraine 1.1 billion kroner, about US$103 million. The money was intended to help repair Ukraine's energy infrastructure and secure its electricity supply before the winter.
A march in Kyiv
In Kyiv on 16 June, hundreds of LGBTQ+ members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and their supporters marched through the centre of the city. They demanded legal reforms that would give more rights to same-sex partnerships. The march took place despite opposition from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and from counter-protesters.
Reading the moment
Taken together, the reports from 16 June show several tracks running in parallel: a diplomatic effort in Switzerland that Russia stayed away from, continued Russian territorial claims in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, foreign financial help aimed at the winter, and a public debate in the capital over civil rights. For international readers, the summit's close marked the end of one stage of Ukraine's diplomacy, while the practical pressures of war and preparation for the cold season went on.
