World leaders were set to join Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday for a summit on peace in his country. But without Russia in attendance, it is being seen as merely a first step in a long process.

Switzerland, which is hosting the two-day gathering at the luxury Burgenstock mountain resort, has sought to temper expectations, framing the event as laying the groundwork for a path to peace, with future summits envisioned involving Moscow.

But in a combative speech on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin slammed the conference, and demanded that Kyiv effectively surrender before any actual peace negotiations.

Zelensky branded Putin’s demands a territorial “ultimatum” reminiscent of Nazi Germany’s dictator Adolf Hitler, while NATO and the United States also immediately rejected the hardline conditions.

“What we need is not a dictated peace but a just and equitable peace which takes into account Ukraine’s (territorial) integrity and sovereignty,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told broadcaster ARD before heading to the summit.

– 92 countries taking part –

The conference, convening exactly 100 countries and global institutions, comes at a perilous moment for exhausted Ukrainians and outgunned soldiers, more than two years since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

More than 50 heads of state and government figure among the attendees, including all of the G7 leaders who have been meeting in Italy — with one notable exception.

US President Joe Biden is instead sending his Vice President Kamala Harris.

“I look forward to standing with our allies and partners in support of Ukraine’s effort to secure a just and lasting peace,” Harris said on X before leaving for the summit.

She is due to meet Zelensky shortly after her helicopter sets down in Burgenstock.

The leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan are attending, as is the European Union chief and the leaders of Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Fiji, Finland, Ghana, Kenya and Poland.

Russia’s BRICS allies Brazil and South Africa are meanwhile only sending an envoy, and India will be represented at the ministerial level.

China is absent, insisting it will not take part without Moscow’s presence.

– Low hopes on front line –

After almost a year of stalemate, Ukraine was forced to abandon dozens of frontline settlements this spring, with Russian troops holding a significant advantage in manpower and resources.

Near Ukraine’s embattled eastern front, hopes for any major breakthrough are nearly nil.

“I’d like to hope that it will bring some changes in the future. But, as experience shows, nothing comes of it,” Maksym, a tank commander the Donetsk region, told AFP.

And in Kyiv, Victoria, a 36-year-old energy industry worker, said she was “exhausted” by the war and wanted to believe the summit would help end it.

But, she said, “I’m a realist in life, so I don’t have high hopes.”

Experts have also warned against too-high expectations from the gathering.

“Meaningful negotiations that could truly end the devastating war in Ukraine remain out of reach, as both Kyiv and Moscow stick to theories of victory that amount to outlasting the other,” the International Crisis Group think tank said.

“Kyiv and its backers will be hard pressed to get tangible results from the meeting.”