Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has criticised German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone for the first time in two years.
Mr. Scholz asked Putin to withdraw his soldiers from Ukraine and begin discussions with Kyiv in order to put the area on track for a “just and lasting peace”.
The Kremlin stated that Berlin had requested the meeting, and Putin informed Mr Scholz that any agreement to halt the fighting in Ukraine must take into account “new territorial realities.”
Mr Zelensky said the call “opens Pandora’s Box,” claiming it is “critical for Putin to weaken his isolation, as well as Russia’s isolation, and to hold meaningless talks.”
This is a decades-old strategy which has “allowed Russia to avoid making any changes to its policies, effectively doing nothing, which has ultimately led to this war,” Mr Zelensky added.
Leaders of the major democracies in the G7 repeated their pledge on Saturday to impose severe consequences on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
The consequences will include sanctions, export controls and other measures, the G7 said. The group will continue supporting Ukraine for as long as necessary, it added.
“Russia remains the sole obstacle to just and lasting peace,” it said in a statement on Saturday. The statement was adopted “in support of Kyiv as the thousandth day of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine approaches.”
“The G7 confirms its commitment to imposing severe costs on Russia through sanctions, export controls and other effective measures. We stand united with Ukraine,” the statement added.
Italy currently holds the 2024 rotating presidency of the G7. Other member states include United States, Canada, Japan, France, Germany and Britain.
