By Chris King • 30 January 2023 • 1:43
Image of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Credit: Alexandros Michailidis/Shutterstock.com
Speaking with the German Tagesspigel newspaper on Sunday, January 29, Chancellor Olaf Scholz reiterated that there was no war between NATO countries and Russia. He also promised to prevent any such escalation in the future.
Germany would not participate in the “constant raising of the stakes” he added, and ruled out the possibility that Berlin would change its position due to international pressure, as happened with the supply of Leopard tanks.
He also rejected the idea of introducing a no-fly zone over Ukraine. This would mean direct intervention in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia he pointed out while adding that his opinion was shared by US President Joe Biden.
The Chancellor noted that it was extremely important for the security of Europe to coordinate its actions with the United States. “It’s important to me that we don’t go it alone at the national level”.
The head of the German government also called important telephone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“I will again have telephone conversations with Putin because you need to talk to each other”, Scholz outlined. He noted that the views of politicians on the conflict are “absolutely different”, and labelled the actions of the Russian army in Ukraine “a terrible senseless war”.
“It is important for me that the conversation always returns to a specific topic – how can the world get out of this terrible state? The conditions for this are clear – the withdrawal of Russian troops”, Scholz concluded.
Commenting on his interview, a spokesman for the Kremlin claimed that no telephone conversation between Putin and Scholz has been scheduled. At the same time, the presidential press secretary claimed that Vladimir Putin was ‘open for communication’. They last spoke by phone on December 2, 2022, as reported by gazeta.ru.
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Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com
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