German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has revealed that he plans to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone soon to urge him to withdraw troops from Ukraine.
Speaking at a conference of the German Protestant Church in Nuremberg on Saturday, Scholz said he had spoken to Putin on the phone in the past.
The advisor also added that he “plans to do it again soon.”
Scholz had said in an interview with German media that he plans to speak with Putin “at the appropriate time,” and added at the time that it has been a long time since the last phone call.
On the other hand, Moscow showed at the time its openness to any dialogue aimed at protecting the country’s interests.
It’s noteworthy that the German chancellor contacted the Russian president in December of last year, urging him to resolve the conflict with Ukraine through diplomacy and withdraw forces from it, while Putin drew attention to the destructive line pursued by Western countries.
Germany is among the largest countries supporting Kiev since the start of the Russian military operation on February 24, 2022, as it announced last May a new military aid package worth 2.7 billion Euros ($2.97 billion), which includes 30 Leopard tanks.
Germany agreed in January to supply the tanks, considered among the best in the West’s arsenal, overcoming concerns about sending heavy weapons that Kiev says are crucial to defeating Moscow.
The German army also trained Ukrainian tank crews and troops assigned to operate Marder vehicles for several weeks at the training grounds in Muenster and Bergen in northern Germany.
