Germany explained to Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev why it is important to help Ukraine, BGNES agency reported. In a statement published by the German embassy in Sofia, German Ambassador Irene Planck defended military aid to Kiev and stressed that ending support for Ukraine would weaken the chances of achieving peace through negotiations.
“If you insist on negotiations but do not supply weapons to Ukraine, then I want you to explain to me how you intend to get Putin to the negotiating table?“, German Ambassador Irene Planck stated.
According to her, the Russian president has not shown any readiness for dialogue despite repeated international initiatives. “Putin does not want to negotiate. Proposals have been made to him repeatedly – lastly at the G7 summit by Ukraine, but each time they have been rejected“, Planck points out.
The German diplomat warns that stopping military aid would weaken Kiev's position and further reduce Moscow's incentives to participate in the negotiation process.
“If you stop supporting Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression, you will weaken Ukraine's position. And then Putin will have even less incentive to negotiate“, the German ambassador states.
Berlin's position comes against the backdrop of the Bulgarian government's decision to suspend military aid to Ukraine and a series of statements by Prime Minister Rumen Radev, in which he insists on the immediate start of peace negotiations between Kiev and Moscow.
During his first official visit abroad as Prime Minister, which took place on May 18, 2026 in Berlin, Radev met with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. In response to a journalist's question at the time, the Bulgarian Prime Minister stated that “at this stage, the most important thing is for the negotiations to begin“.
“It is high time for diplomacy, because a war of attrition actually exhausts all participating and supporting countries – economically and socially“, Rumen Radev said then and expressed hope that the negotiations would begin as soon as possible.
The visits of the Bulgarian Prime Minister to the German capital, however, did not arouse significant interest among the leading German media.
In recent days, Rumen Radev has also caused new tension within the European Union after announcing that Bulgaria would insist that the Russian Patriarch Kirill and the long-time head of “Lukoil“ Vagit Alekperov be removed from the EU sanctions lists. The Prime Minister said that otherwise Sofia could veto the next package of European sanctions against Russia.
The statement by the German ambassador is another clear signal from Berlin that, according to the German position, military support for Ukraine remains a key instrument for deterring Russian aggression and creating conditions for real peace negotiations.