Scholz has called for renewed engagement with Russia after the end of the conflict in Ukraine
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in an interview with the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper that dialogue with Moscow must be maintained.
“It is important that despite serious disagreements, we do not allow the thread of negotiations with Russia to break,” he stressed.
The chancellor also added that “if we do not talk”, resolving the crisis in Ukraine “will become even more unlikely”.
At the same time, Scholz did not give a direct answer to the question about the possibility of going to Moscow in 2023, saying only that it was necessary to negotiate an end to the conflict and to protect the integrity of Ukraine. He also conceded that in the long term, once the special operation is over, interaction with Russia will become possible again, but stressed that now is not the time for that yet.
Foreign Ministry commented on Western statements about Russia’s avoidance of dialogue
Speaking about providing Ukraine with security guarantees in case of a peace settlement, the Chancellor said that their content remains a complex issue which must be answered during the negotiations.
In early November, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, following Western media reports that Kiev was being pushed towards dialogue with Russia, named Ukraine’s conditions for starting negotiations. In his words, these are “restoration of territorial integrity, respect for the UN Charter, compensation for all losses, punishment of every war criminal and guarantees that this will not happen again”.
At the same time, Zelenskyy had earlier signed a decree on the impossibility of holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also said that Kiev would not engage in dialogue with Moscow while Putin was in office.
As the Russian president himself noted, Moscow has always said that it is open to talks on Ukraine, if Kiev matures, then the mediation efforts of those who offer them will be needed.
Presidential press secretary Dmitriy Peskov stressed that Ukraine cannot and does not want to negotiate, “accordingly, the goals of the Russian Federation will be pursued through the continuation of a special military operation”.
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