KYIV (Reuters) -President Volodymyr Zelenskiy cautioned German Chancellor Olaf Scholz against speaking to Vladimir Putin by phone on Friday, saying it would reduce the Russian leader’s isolation and keep the war going, a source in Ukraine’s presidential office said.
A German government spokesperson said Scholz urged Putin to begin talks with Kyiv that would open the way for a “just and lasting peace” as the leaders held their first phone call since December 2022 as the war in Ukraine rages on.
The source in Kyiv told Reuters that Scholz, a close ally of Ukraine during the war with Russia, informed Zelenskiy in advance of his plans to speak to the Russian leader.
“The chancellor told our president he plans to talk to Putin. The President said this would only help Putin by reducing his isolation. Putin doesn’t want real peace, he wants a break,” the source said.
“Talking to him will let Putin change the scenery and keep the war going. It won’t bring peace because Putin will just repeat the lies he’s been telling for years, making it seem like he’s no longer isolated,” the source said.
In a one-hour phone conversation, Scholz demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine and reaffirmed Germany’s continued support for Ukraine, the German spokesman said.
Berlin is a major Ukrainian financial backer and its largest provider of weapons after the United States, whose future support for Kyiv appears uncertain following Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election this month.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Toby Chopra and Alex Richardson)
