German Chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to call Russian President Vladimir Putin in the coming weeks, despite different positions, German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit told reporters.
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According to him, the German authorities do not believe that Putin’s recent speech in Volgograd leads to a political escalation in relations between the two countries, and they want to continue contact, despite different positions.
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“Despite the statements … the Federal Chancellor (Olaf Scholz) once again said during a conversation with fellow citizens in Marburg that he plans to phone the Russian president in the next few weeks,” Hebeshtreit said at a briefing.
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He added that despite the difference in opinions about the conflict in Ukraine, the German authorities consider it necessary to maintain regular contact with the Russian leader “in the hope of some progress.”
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“It is important for the Chancellor to maintain this contact. And I know, based on many international meetings, that many other states, the leadership of their governments also consider it important to maintain this regular contact,” the representative of the Cabinet of Ministers specified.
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He recalled that the last time Scholz and Putin spoke by phone was in December last year.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking at an event marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad on February 2, said that those who drag Germany into a new war with the Russian Federation and expect to win do not understand that a modern war with Russia will be different.
