German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he was willing to start talking with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin again, with relations between the two leaders almost nonexistent as the Kremlin continues its assault on Ukraine.
“My last phone call was some time ago,” Scholz said in an interview with the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger published Friday. “But I intend to talk to Putin again in due course,” the chancellor added.
The last known phone call between the two leaders took place in December, when they agreed to “stay in touch.”
Scholz at the time called for a diplomatic solution to the war, including a withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine, while Putin said the German supply of weapons to Kyiv was “destructive” and urged Berlin to rethink its approach.
In the interview, Scholz said he remained committed to peace talks.
“It does not look like the war can be decided on the battlefield,” Scholz said, stressing that the withdrawal of Russian troops was a “prerequisite” for a “fair peace.”
More than a year since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, several countries are ramping up diplomatic efforts to bring both parties to the negotiating table.
Denmark said earlier this week it was willing to host peace talks in July, while several countries from the Global South, led by China and Brazil, have tried to position themselves as intermediaries.