Scholz reaffirms readiness to negotiate with Putin
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has expressed a readiness to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin to bring the Ukraine conflict to an end. He made the remarks on Wednesday in a speech to the German Parliament. Scholz reiterated the call for another “peace summit” on Ukraine, and stated that Russia should be invited.
“Therefore, it is also true that when we are asked whether we will also talk to the Russian president, we answer – yes, we will,” he said.
The potential negotiations with Moscow, however, would not happen “over the heads of Ukraine and never without deliberation with our closest partners,” Scholz clarified.
Earlier this month, Moscow dismissed German media reports that Scholz wanted to speak with Putin by phone ahead of the November G20 meeting in Brazil. At the time, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the two leaders had “no common issues” to discuss, and described ties between Moscow and Berlin as being “reduced to virtually zero.”
The likelihood of a second ‘peace summit’ on Ukraine actually taking place remains unclear. The conference had been originally scheduled for November, but ended up scrapped with no new date set. The first gathering was hosted by Switzerland back in June. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky promoted his ‘peace formula’ at the event – a ten-point wish list that Moscow has rejected as delusional. Russia was not invited to the meeting, and it has been widely perceived as a failure without any concrete results.
Earlier in the day, Zelensky unveiled his long-heralded ‘victory plan’, calling for, among other things, an immediate invitation to Kiev to join NATO. That prospect has apparently received a cold reception in Berlin, with government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit stating there has been no shift in Germany’s stance on the matter.
According to German media, Zelensky failed to get any concessions from Scholz during his recent European tour. The key requirements raised by Ukrainian leader included long-range weapons deliveries, namely German Taurus missiles, as well as fast-tracking NATO membership. His pleas, however, “fell on deaf ears in Berlin” with the chancellor dodging the questions and giving Zelensky no exact answers.
