Malta opened talks on a Ukraine-proposed peace plan in its capital Valletta on Saturday with representatives from more than 50 countries attending, except boycotting Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hopes the two-day meeting, held behind closed doors, will drum up support for his 10-point plan to end the war sparked by Russia's February 2022 invasion.

It is the third Ukrainian-backed peace talks after similar summits in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Copenhagen, Denmark this summer.

National security and policy advisors from more than 50 countries plus international institutions are expected — more than the 40-odd nations at the Saudi summit in August.

Zelensky's peace plan calls for Russia to withdraw all its troops from Ukraine's internationally recognized borders, including from the territory of Crimea, which it annexed in 2014.

Russia — which claimed to annex the four Ukrainian regions of Lugansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in September 2022 — has rejected any settlement that would involve giving up land.

The discussions would focus on five key areas — food security, energy security, nuclear security, humanitarian issues and restoring the territorial integrity of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine's presidential office, said this week.

Organizers are hoping for a joint statement from the Malta summit, after both previous meetings ended without a final declaration.

Talks participants include the United States, the European Union and Britain, staunch supporters of Kyiv, as well as Turkey, which has offered itself as a mediator between Ukraine and Russia.

Also attending are South Africa, Brazil and India, members of the influential BRICS bloc, which also includes Russia.

South Africa and India have not condemned the invasion, while Brazil has refused to join Western nations in sending arms to Ukraine or imposing sanctions on Moscow.

China, which insists it is neutral and refuses to criticize the invasion, was present in Jeddah and is hoped to take part in Malta, diplomats said.

WITH AFP