"We are very active, together with President [of Ukraine Volodymyr] Zelensky, and in close coordination with his team in preparing the peace summit that will take place in Switzerland. [...] At this stage, we are relatively confident, but vigilant," said Charles Michel, in an interview with Lusa.

On the day he travels to Portugal to participate in the annual meeting of the Concordia Europe organization, the president of the European Council points out that "Russia is developing a series of instruments to undermine this meeting".

"We know that Russia is very active at the political and diplomatic level to convince countries not to participate or not to participate at a high level. That is why it is essential to contact some leaders in the coming days because some countries have not yet decided on their participation," explains the official.

Stressing that "this is vital to maximize the change for the meeting to be successful," Charles Michel says he is "in dialogue" with countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

In addition, "I will have a phone call very soon with President Lula [da Silva], from Brazil" and "we are in close contact with the United States," he highlights.

"It is an important first step. Russia does not like this initiative and that is why they are trying to undermine this initiative, but our interest is to make this meeting a success," he stresses.

So far, more than 70 heads of state and government have confirmed their presence at the Conference for Peace in Ukraine, which will take place between June 15 and 16 in Switzerland, including the main Latin American leaders with the exception of Brazil, which has not yet confirmed.

In total, 160 states have received an invitation to participate in the event, which admits the presence of the President of the United States, Joe Biden, who in the previous days will be in neighboring Italy to participate in the G7 summit.

The Russian government was not invited, sparking harsh criticism from the Kremlin. Moscow has pointed out that without its participation, no progress will be possible towards a political solution to the war in Ukraine.

The Russian military offensive in Ukrainian territory, launched on February 24, 2022, plunged Europe into what is considered the most serious security crisis since World War II (1939-1945).

In this interview with Lusa, the president of the European Council also says that it is his "personal determination" that EU leaders move forward next month with an intergovernmental conference to formally start negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the community bloc.

"I am not alone, but I am absolutely motivated to do everything to make this decision possible by the end of June," said Charles Michel, when referring to the date of June 25 for this initiative.

Despite "some legitimate concerns" from EU member states about such a process, namely from Hungary, which has opposed Ukrainian accession, the official says he has assured the Ukrainian president that he is "determined to do everything to make it a possible decision".

"We are never sure it will work, but I will use all my influence to make it happen," Charles Michel tells Lusa.

Ukraine has had the status of an EU candidate country since mid-2022, months after the start of the Russian invasion.

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