German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is ready to keep communication lines open with Russian President Vladimir Putin despite acknowledging the lack of progress from their last phone call, according to an Aachener Zeitung report.
During RTL’s year-end review, Scholz said that his mid-November conversation was “frustrating” but that it was necessary in Germany’s ongoing support for Ukraine.
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“It was frustrating,” Scholz said, “because he [Putin] just repeated all his usual formulas.”
The chancellor said that the phone call to Putin was necessary to convey that Germany's support for Ukraine would not waver and “that he must also withdraw troops so that a basis for peace can be created.”
“That is necessary, and I will do it again. But one must not harbor any illusions,” Scholz added.
On Nov. 15, Scholz spoke with Putin for the first time in nearly two years, urging him to withdraw Russian forces from Ukraine. The call, initiated by Scholz, marked the first direct contact between the two leaders since December 2022.
This call was reportedly coordinated with US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, however, criticized the call, cautioning against engaging in dialogue with Putin and describing it as a potential “Pandora’s box.”
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On Nov. 29, a phone call between Scholz and Zelensky occurred, during which they discussed Scholz’s recent conversation with Putin.
According to Bild, Scholz traveled to Kyiv on Dec. 2 to assess Ukraine’s stance on the ongoing war and potential peace negotiations, marking his first visit to the Ukrainian capital in over two years.
During a confidential meeting, Scholz sought to understand Zelensky’s perspective on the war and the peace terms Ukrainian society might be willing to accept, the report reads.
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