A clear majority of Germans would like chancellor Olaf Scholz to resume dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin after almost two years of silence, according to a study published today, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
The poll, conducted by the YouGov public opinion research institute on behalf of DPA, shows that 59% of respondents support the possibility of the two leaders talking on the phone. Only 26% were against and 15% did not give an answer.
In East Germany, 68% of respondents wanted the two to talk, while 19% did not.
For several weeks, Scholz has been agitating for a new peace conference for Ukraine, in which Russia will also participate. Putin was not invited to the first peace summit in Switzerland in June, DPA recalls.
Today Scholz is due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Berlin for the third time in five weeks. The talks are likely to focus on efforts to find a peaceful solution to the war, which Russia began in February 2022. The two are also likely to talk about further military support for Ukraine.
Scholz and Putin last spoke by phone on December 2, 2022, but the German chancellor has repeatedly made it clear that he could imagine talking to Putin again.
There is speculation that the phone call could take place before the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro on November 18 and 19. Russia will take part in this meeting, although it is not clear whether Putin himself will attend.
Germans are divided over whether Ukraine should give up part of its territory for peace with Russia. About 39% believe that it should not give way even a centimeter. But 22% think Ukraine should give up the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Russia 10 years ago.
Another 23% say that Kiev should give up not only Crimea, but also the territories that have been occupied by Russia since its full-scale invasion more than two years ago. A total of 45% of those surveyed are in favor of giving up territories.
There is also disagreement over whether Ukraine should be allowed to fire Western long-range weapons at targets deep inside Russian territory. Of those surveyed, 42% are "for“ and 43% are "against“.
Zelensky has long called on his Western allies for such permission, saying that without it it would be like trying to fight with your hands tied.
Scholz is skeptical about this. Unlike the US, UK and France, Germany has so far not supplied Ukraine with long-range weapons. Scholz is consistently unwilling to provide Kiev with “Taurus“ cruise missiles. with a range of 500 km, as it is feared that in such a case Germany and NATO could be drawn into the war.