German Chancellor Olaf Scholz today again emphasized his readiness to talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin about a just peace in Ukraine, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
According to him, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for a new peace conference with the participation of Putin.
„That is why it is right, if we are asked, to talk with the Russian president,”, Scholz noted before the German parliament.
He indicated that he was following clear principles, insisting on talks with Russia. Scholz assured that decisions will never be made "over the head of Ukraine and never without consultation with our closest partners".
At the same time, the German chancellor said that countless Russian soldiers are also becoming daily “victims of the imperialist madness of the Russian president”. “They are also victims of his policies aimed at expanding his country. Something that shouldn't happen anymore in Europe in this way”, stressed Scholz.
He defended his country's close relationship with the US and other NATO allies amid recent criticism from populist parties.
The far-right “Alternative for Germany” and the newly created alliance “Sara Wagenknecht“ called long-standing pillars of German politics into question, Scholz stressed in a speech before the parliament.
„I say this is wrong. This is a threat to our security. We must adhere to the constants of our foreign policy, to our international orientation,”, added the chancellor. Among these constants are Germany's membership in the European Union and NATO, as well as close cooperation with the United States, noted Scholz.
„They will continue to be central points in Germany's international orientation”, he concluded.