Switzerland reveals detection of cyberattacks ahead of Ukraine Peace Summit News
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Switzerland reveals detection of cyberattacks ahead of Ukraine Peace Summit

Switzerland’s government revealed in a press conference on Monday that authorities registered cyberattacks in the run- up to the Summit on Peace in Ukraine planned on 15-16 June in Bürgenstock, Canton of Nidwalden.

The President of the Swiss Confederation Viola Amherd asserted in response to a question about the adopted safety measures in preparation for the Ukraine summit that authorities encountered “a couple of disturbances and cyberattacks” but said she couldn’t give any more details on the subject. She also added that the organization of an international conference such as the one that will be held this weekend is always subject to the same risks but the government is prepared for all of them.

The Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis further added that the number of cyberattacks and misinformation campaigns has increased massively in recent weeks, without giving any information on who was behind the mentioned attacks. He also pointed out that cyberattacks and misinformation are “instruments to sabotage the good running of the conference “.

The Summit on Peace in Ukraine is an international conference organized by Switzerland that aims at promoting lasting peace in Ukraine. Over 160 delegations from 90 countries in Europe and other continents will attend the summit this Saturday to discuss visions to lay out the foundations of a framework to achieve peace in Ukraine based on international law and the UN charter. According to President Viola Amherd, both organizers and participating states expect to “initiate a broadly backed process to achieve a lasting and comprehensive peace in Ukraine and create the conditions for a future peace conference with Russia’s participation”. Discussions will include three topics of global interest which are nuclear safety, freedom of navigation and food security and finally humanitarian aspects.

Ahead of the conference, Amnesty International urged the global community in a statement on Monday to address issues related to human rights, justice for victims of violations and civil society groups in Ukraine and called for the participation of civil society and NGOs in the international conference. However, NGOs won’t be attending this event because its purpose is to discuss the possibility of a peace process in Ukraine at the “highest political level”, but the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs assured that civil society organizations will be included as the peace project progresses.

The Summit on Peace in Ukraine is the most recent international conference held by Switzerland addressing the Ukraine-Russia conflict and discussing ways to promote Ukraine’s recovery. A conference organized by Germany, the URC 2024, took place in Berlin on June 11 and will be continued on June 12 with the goal of mobilizing international support for the reconstruction and modernization of Ukraine. This conference is a “continuation” of a series of international events started by Switzerland. The latter had previously co-organized and hosted the Ukraine Recovery Conference URC2022 in July 2022 which also addressed the reconstruction of Ukraine’s infrastructure, economy, environment and social affairs.

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