Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has launched an ambitious diplomatic offensive by announcing he wants Russia to join global leaders at a planned second peace summit to end the war in Ukraine.
As Russia gains momentum on the front and aid from allies ebbs or is in doubt, Mr Zelenskyy told French media the entire world, including Ukraine wants Russia at the summit.
Leaders and top officials from dozens of countries gathered at the Swiss mountainside resort of Burgenstock in June for a first summit, which Russia derided as a waste of time and China shunned.
While the Kremlin was not invited to the first gathering, now is the time for Moscow to take a seat at the table, Mr Zelenskyy said.
“The majority of the world today says that Russia must be represented at the second summit, otherwise we will not achieve meaningful results,” he said in western Ukraine on Tuesday.
“Since the whole world wants them to be at the table, we cannot be against it.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he is open to negotiations, but would only order a ceasefire if Kyiv effectively surrendered territory that Moscow claims as its own.
Mr Zelenskyy's push focuses on a sweeping 10-point plan that would restore Ukrainian territorial integrity, return prisoners of war and give Ukraine energy and economic guarantees.
He acknowledged that China was a key player but said he did not want mediation from Beijing and instead urged it to pressure the Kremlin to end its invasion.
“If China wants, it can force Russia to stop this war,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
While the Ukrainian leader has won broad international backing for his peace efforts, Mr Zelenskyy hit out at some of those same allies for barring his army from using their weapons to hit deep inside Russian territory.
“It's a serious challenge that we can't use all the weapons we need to stop this enemy. What would you do if you were us?” he said.
He also criticised stilted arms deliveries, saying Ukraine was still waiting for weapons from allies to equip recently mobilised troops.
And if Ukraine breaks the terms of use for Western-donated weapons “then they can say that we won't give you any more help – that's the risk”, he said.
Mr Zelenskyy met French media at a school gym in the western town of Rivne, after being whisked from a gathering to hear grievances of local businesses and a meeting with local officials.
Only one day earlier he had handed out awards to special forces in the frontline Kharkiv region more than 800km away.
Despite his wall-to-wall itinerary that this year has included visits to Asian and European capitals, one trip he has not made was to the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris.
“I would have loved to attend if this wasn't such a difficult time in my country. It is a tense moment in the east of our country,” he said, referring to Russia's capture of a slew of villages in the industrial Donbas region.
Mr Zelenskyy criticised the International Olympic Committee's decision to allow some Russian athletes to compete at the Paris Games under a neutral flag.
“Let there be bloodstains on it, and then let them compete,” he said, calling the IOC decision “piecemeal sanctions”.
With uncertainty for Ukrainian forces looming over the sprawling eastern front line, Mr Zelenskyy also conceded that a neck-and-neck presidential race in the US – a vital political and military ally – presented further “risks”.
Washington has provided tens of billions of dollars in military assistance for Kyiv since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
But a victory for Republican candidate Donald Trump – who claims he will be able to force the sides into a negotiated settlement – would bring Washington's continued support into question.
“We cannot influence any election,” he told reporters. “Of course, the United States is a challenge today. And there are risks that probably none of us can predict.”
The Democrats' presumptive White House candidate Kamala Harris has echoed President Joe Biden's pro-Ukraine stance.
Mr Zelenskyy said his team had been in touch both with her aides and the Trump campaign.
“As president of Ukraine, I must, of course, have a dialogue between my team and the Biden, Trump, and today Harris teams,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
“We have to have all these contacts and talk about what our future might look like if one side or the other wins the election.”
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
