Nicolas Datiche/Pool via REUTERS
The chancellor Olaf Solz rejected it again possibility of peace in Ukraine without the departure of Russian troopswhile he estimated that the war will last a long time and gave an insight from his telephone conversations with the Russian president Vladimir Putin.
The federal president Frank-Walter Steinmeierfor his part, called for equipping the German armed forces with an eye also on the security of his entire region NATO.
“Investing in our security does not just mean expanding the (defense) budget, but above all it means making a greater effort to contribute to the security of the NATO region as a whole (…) Being on the ground protects you from being directly involved in war “, said Mr. Steinmeier in the framework of the visit of his Czech counterpart Peter Pavel.
“With its attack on Ukraine, Russia destroyed the peaceful order in Europe,” the German president added, while Mr Pavel, a former NATO general, said “Germany could show its leadership skills in many areas – in the common European defense, but also in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine”.
Soltz, speaking at an event of “Rheinische Post”, again rejected the possibility of peace in Ukraine without the withdrawal of Russian forces. “We cannot end up with a Russian-dictated peace,” he stressed and expressed the assessment that the war will not end soon.
“We have to be prepared for the possibility that it will take a long time,” he said, stressing that “the Russian president must not win the war.
“Ukraine must be able to defend its integrity and independence,” he added.
Referring to the phone conversations he had with Vladimir Putin in recent months, the chancellor explained that they sometimes lasted up to one and a half hourwhile sometimes the Russian president does not use an interpreter, because he also speaks German – “when it suits” the occasion.
Olaf Solz explained that his conversations with Bl. Putin is always in touch with Germany’s allies and makes it clear when a communication is imminent.
“It’s not like sending an SMS and asking: see you again?”, the chancellor characteristically said and clarified that, despite all the differences, the discussions are always conducted in an atmosphere of courtesy.
Analyzing the situation in relation to the war in Ukraine, the head of the Munich Security Conference, Christoph Heusgen, told private broadcaster n-tv earlier today that the state of the Russian military is “very bad” and noted that the Russians “have not been able to move the front further into Ukraine and occupy a position – not necessarily of strategic importance, then from months of fighting in Bahmut.”
In addition, Kr. Heusgen, the Russian armed forces are facing a serious problem of ammunition supply, while too often, he said, “the regular Russian army and Prigozhin’s mercenaries, the Wagner troops, are fighting against each other.”
The veteran German diplomat referring to the visit of the Chinese president, Xi Jinpingin Moscow, noted that the two leaders are essentially dependent on each other, but the relationship between the two countries has now been reversed:
“Putin is now nothing more than Xi’s waiter and Russia is China’s discount gas station,” he said characteristically.
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