Government spokesman in Berlin Steffen Hebestreit reported in a Friday statement that Scholz “urged Russia to be willing to negotiate with Ukraine with the aim of achieving a just and lasting peace.”
Scholz also called on Putin to withdraw his forces from Ukrainian territory, confirmed Berlin’s determination to maintain aid to Ukraine and said that the presence of North Korean troops fighting alongside the Russians constitutes a serious escalation of the conflict, the dpa news agency reported.
Scholz had spoken with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday and would do so again after the call with Putin, the statement from Hebestreit also said.
On Friday afternoon, the Polish prime minister announced in a post on the X platform that he had spoken with Scholz after his call with Putin.
He wrote: “I have just received a call from Chancellor Scholz who gave me an account of his talk with V. Putin. I was satisfied to hear that he not only condemned the Russian aggression, but he also reiterated the Polish position: ‘Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine’.”
Prior to his conversation with Putin, Zelenskyy advised Scholz that it would reduce the Russian leader’s isolation and keep the war going, a source in Ukraine’s presidential office said. After the conversation, Ukraine’s foreign ministry spokesperson said that talks with Putin bring no additional value on the path to achieving a just peace.
Germany is among the leading providers of assistance to Ukraine, although Scholz recently
reiterated that he is against permitting Kyiv to use its weapons against targets inside Russia and ruled out providing Ukraine with long-range Taurus cruise missiles.
