BERLIN (AP) 鈥� German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin leader鈥檚 first publicly announced conversation with the sitting head of a major Western power in nearly two years. Scholz urged Putin to be open , his office said.
The Kremlin leader responded that any peace deal should acknowledge Russia's territorial gains and security demands, including that Kyiv renounce joining NATO.
Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said Scholz urged Putin in the hour-long call to withdraw his troops and end the full-scale invasion launched in February 2022. The conflict will reach its 1,000th day on Tuesday, and exiled Russian opposition leaders, including Alexei Navalny's widow, Yulia, have set an antiwar rally for Sunday in Berlin.
鈥淭he chancellor urged Russia to be willing to negotiate with Ukraine with the aim of achieving a just and lasting peace and stressed Germany鈥檚 unwavering determination to support Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression for as long as necessary,鈥� Hebestreit said in a statement.
The new communication between Scholz and Putin 鈥� their first since December 2022 鈥� comes at a time of widespread speculation about what the new administration of President-elect Donald Trump will mean for Ukraine. Scholz faces a political crisis at home and has called for a vote of confidence next month, with an early election in February.
Washington has been Ukraine's biggest military backer, but Trump has repeatedly being given to Ukraine. While Trump has suggested he could settle the , Ukraine has ruled out giving up any territory to Moscow in return for peace.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized Scholz鈥檚 call to Putin, calling it 鈥渁 Pandora鈥檚 box鈥� and would only serve to make Russia less isolated.
鈥淣ow there may be other conversations, other calls. Just a lot of words. And this is exactly what Putin has wanted for a long time,鈥� Zelenskyy said in his nightly address. 鈥淚t is crucial for him to weaken his isolation. ... And to engage in negotiations, ordinary negotiations, that will lead to nothing.鈥�
Scholz condemned Russian air raids on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and warned that the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia to fight in the war would mark a serious escalation. The U.S., South Korea and Ukraine say North Korea has sent to support its war against Ukraine.
The Kremlin said Germany initiated the call, during which the leaders had a 鈥渄etailed and frank exchange of opinions on the situation in Ukraine.鈥�
Putin blamed 鈥渢he current crisis鈥� on what he called NATO鈥檚 鈥渓ong-standing aggressive policy aimed at creating an anti-Russian stronghold on Ukrainian territory while ignoring our country鈥檚 security interests and trampling on the rights of Russian-speaking residents,鈥� a Kremlin readout said.
Putin also said Russia remains open to resuming peace talks, pointing to conditions he laid out in June that included Kyiv renouncing its bid to join NATO and withdrawing troops from the four Ukrainian regions that Moscow illegally annexed in 2022.
鈥淧ossible agreements should take into account the interests of the Russian Federation in the security sphere, proceed from new territorial realities, and most importantly, eliminate the root causes of the conflict,鈥� the readout said.
Putin, who earlier this month said it's up to Western leaders to resume contact with Russia if they want, also noted the 鈥渦nprecedented degradation鈥� in bilateral relations between Germany and Russia, the Kremlin statement said, while noting that leaders also discussed the situation in the Middle East.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the leaders had a 鈥渄etailed" and 鈥渇rank鈥� exchange of opinions but added that 鈥漷here is no talk about convergence of opinions."
The two sides agreed to remain in contact after the call.
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Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten contributed.
Kirsten Grieshaber, The Associated Press
