The Prime Minister of the German state of Saxony, Michael Kretschmer, calls on Ukraine to accept temporary cessions of territory for the sake of a truce. He also called for a "reversal" in Germany's policy toward Russia, Spiegel reports. In turn, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry called on the German politician to face the truth, Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleh Nikolenko wrote on his Facebook page, UNN reported.
Details
Saxony's prime minister offers Ukraine to temporarily give up territory in favor of a ceasefire.
"In the event of a ceasefire, Ukraine may first have to accept that some territories are temporarily inaccessible to Ukraine," he said in an interview with the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper on Wednesday.
"Not a single square meter of Ukrainian territory has become Russian," Kretschmer emphasized. "But, as in other major conflicts, the time has come for a final solution," the politician pointed out.
Kretschmer once again called on the German government not only to supply weapons to Ukraine, but also to take diplomatic initiatives. According to him, allies are needed to "influence Russian President Vladimir Putin and make a ceasefire possible."
"Unfortunately, the basic position of the German government is that we don't want negotiations, we want arms deliveries," said the prime minister of Saxony and added: "The Americans are moving on. They have realized that the war cannot be won this way."
According to Kretschmer, a reversal in policy toward Russia is needed.
"The idea of weakening Russia militarily, politically and economically so that it no longer poses a threat to us is a position that dates back to the 19th century. It lays the foundation for further conflicts," the politician noted.
MFA position
The Foreign Ministry, responding to the German politician's statement, noted that if Ukraine accepts the temporary loss of territory, Russian troops will be closer to Germany and Saxony in particular. According to Nikolenko, Putin is well acquainted with the region from his time serving near Dresden.
The concessions of territories will certainly lead to greater Russian aggression, which will undoubtedly extend beyond Ukraine. Peace in Europe lies in the defeat of Moscow. We call on the German politician to face the truth: first, Chancellor Angela Merkel and later Chancellor Olaf Scholz made enormous political efforts to convince Putin to stop the war. This did not work. Nor will any other concessions. His goal is to destroy Ukraine and destabilize the whole of Europe
According to Nikolenko, the only "reversal" in Germany's policy toward Russia could be even greater support for Ukraine. "And we are very grateful that the German federal government shares this approach," the Foreign Ministry spokesman added.