German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Russian President Vladimir Putin talked on the phone for the first time in two years, the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin reported—at more length and detail than the German mainstream media.
The Foreign Ministry’s release states:
“At the initiative of the German side, the first telephone conversation since December 2022 took place between Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz .
“A detailed and frank exchange of views on the situation in Ukraine was held. Vladimir Putin recalled that the current crisis was a direct result of NATO’s long-standing aggressive policy aimed at creating an anti-Russian bridgehead on Ukrainian territory while ignoring our country’s security interests and trampling on the rights of Russian-speaking residents.
“As for the prospects for a political and diplomatic settlement of the conflict, the Russian President noted that the Russian side has never refused and remains open to resuming negotiations that were interrupted by the Kiev regime.
“Russia’s proposals are well known and were set out, in particular, in a June speech at the Russian Foreign Ministry. Possible agreements should…take into account the interests of the Russian Federation in the field of security, proceed from the new territorial realities, and most importantly, eliminate the root causes of the conflict.
“The state of affairs in Russian-German relations was also touched upon. Vladimir Putin noted their unprecedented degradation in all areas as a consequence of the unfriendly course of the German authorities.
