Scholz on the conversation with Putin: He made it clear that Ukraine has the right to be independent

The Chancellor announced this on Monday, December 2, during a joint press conference with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.

Scholz, answering a question about how to conduct a dialogue about peace with a person who does not want it, stated that “it is easy to respond with a clear position, a clear conversation, as well as clear statements about what we will do.”

“I made it very clear that Ukraine has the right to be an independent, sovereign, democratic state which has decided that it wants to be part of the European Union and which also has a strong army and therefore can achieve its independence. Russia must stop the war and withdraw its troops. I also told him that very clearly,” said Scholz.

The chancellor also recalled his conversation with the dictator in Moscow, which took place on the eve of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

According to him, the parties had significant differences, especially on issues that Putin believed had become “the basis for starting a war”.

“In my opinion, this was planned a long time ago. It was decided two years before the start of the war. It didn’t happen spontaneously three weeks or two months before, but rather something he worked on purposefully,” Scholz noted.

On December 2, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made an unannounced visit to Kyiv for the first time in two and a half years. Also that day, Scholz announced the preparation of a military aid package for Ukraine in the amount of 650 million euros.

Scholz last visited Ukraine in June 2022 together with French President Emmanuel Macron and then Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi.

On November 29, Zelensky had a telephone conversation with Sholtz. The Chancellor of Germany told the President of Ukraine the details of his call to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

What is known about Scholz’s phone conversation with Putin

On November 15, Olaf Scholz had a telephone conversation with Putin for the first time in almost two years. DW reported that the conversation lasted about an hour. In the conversation, he condemned the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and called on Putin to withdraw his troops.

Scholz also stated that Germany is ready to help Ukraine as much as it will be needed. Before the conversation, the German chancellor also spoke with Zelenskyi.

According to Reuters, Zelensky warned Chancellor Scholz against calling Putin.

After the conversation, the President of Ukraine criticized such an initiative of the German leader and emphasized that this is Pandora’s box, because such negotiations are exactly what Putin wants.

The German tabloid Bild wrote that almost a month before the telephone conversation between Scholz and Putin, it was agreed with US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron.

On November 17, Scholz said that his call to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin was to demonstrate the steadfastness of the West’s support for Ukraine.