As of today, 90 states confirm participation in Peace Summit, incl. intel organizations – President of Switzerland
To date, 90 states from Europe, North and South America, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, including international organizations, have confirmed their participation in the inaugural Peace Summit, which will be held on June 15-16 in Switzerland, President of Switzerland Viola Amherd said.
"To date, 90 states have confirmed the participation in it (the summit), half of which are from Europe and North America, and the other half from South America, Africa, the Middle East and Asia... As for 90 countries, among them there are also some organizations, such as the UN, that will be represented," Amherd said on Monday at a press conference about the progress of preparations and security measures for the Peace Summit.
At the same time, she emphasized that the list of participants is constantly changing and will continue to change until the last day before the start of the Summit.
Of the countries that have confirmed their participation, about half will be represented by heads of state and government, while the other half will send ministers and other representatives, Amherd said.
Asked whether it was disappointing for the event organizers that of the 160 invited participants, only 90 had registered to participate, the Swiss President replied: "I think that the participation of at least 90 states and organizations is more of a success than a disappointment."
She also added that at the moment representatives of Brazil, South Africa and China have not yet confirmed their participation in the peace conference.
Regarding security measures during the Peace Summit, according to Amherd, the Swiss Federal Council introduced restrictions on the use of airspace and decided to involve up to 4,000 military personnel. In addition, the Swiss army will take over the tasks of protecting critical facilities and air transport.
The Swiss President also said that Swiss law enforcement officers have already recorded several cyberattacks, but did not disclose details, but emphasized that "we are ready for all these risks, especially cyber risks."
In turn, Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said that over the past few weeks the number of cyberattacks has increased significantly. "And this clearly shows that there is an interest in preventing the conference from taking place properly," he said.