German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has tried to convince citizens that Germany will not become a party to the war in Ukraine by continuing to support Kiev in the fight against Russian troops.
“Yes, I give this guarantee,” he said Wednesday in response to a question in the Bundestag parliament, repeating comments he had made earlier. “That is what I stand for as Chancellor.”
However, Russian President Vladimir Putin has long viewed Germany and the Western military alliance NATO as parties to the war.
Scholz rejected the idea that there should be a ceasefire in Ukraine on Russian terms. “In my opinion, a ceasefire in which Ukraine surrenders is something that we as Germany should never support.”
The Chancellor said this was not an abstract question, “as you can see from this strange peace offer from Mr Putin.”
“He has said he is willing to agree to a ceasefire if Ukraine also gives him more annexations for free, so to speak.”
According to Scholz, this shows that Putin has no intention of ending the war.
