The fact that Germany’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Johann David Wadephul requested a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, grabbed international headlines, but the content of the discussion apparently broke no new ground. In fact, Wadephul reportedly used the occasion to reiterate Germany’s full backing of Ukraine in NATO’s war to demolish Russia, sounding pretty much like a recorded version of a Zelensky speech.
Wadephul notified his European allies of the meeting afterwards in a message seen by Reuters: “I used this opportunity to reiterate our position on Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and to call for an immediate and complete ceasefire, most pressingly with a focus on grain exports, and the energy infrastructure,” he wrote. Wadephul further demanded of Lavrov that Russia should abandon its “dangerous path of escalation” with Germany, Europe and NATO. Deutsche Welle wrote that “the meeting comes amid sharply worsening relations between Berlin and Moscow, just weeks after Germany accused Russia of being behind an attempted drone attack on Leipzig/Halle airport.”
The meeting was the first such meeting of foreign ministers of the two countries since Russia’s 2022 special military operation against Ukraine—and it was requested by the German side, according to Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. It was held before Lavrov’s address to world leaders.
After his UN speech, Lavrov told a news conference:
“When I met, I invited German Foreign Affairs official J. Wadephul to present what he had come to discuss. He took out his notes and read a text that simply reiterated what German leaders state publicly and officially on a daily basis. I pointed that out to him. I gleaned nothing new from it. The subtext was that he had ‘deigned’ to make contact with us, and that in return for this gesture of goodwill, we ought to make concessions regarding the Ukraine front and secure an agreement on the Black Sea region to ensure the smooth passage of tankers and dry-cargo ships…
“I told him frankly that I had thought he had something interesting or unusual. They could have simply called and said, ‘Read our official statements.’ So, I ended up listening to yet another speech on the subject.”
Asked why Wadephul had changed his mind about speaking to Russia and requested a meeting, Lavrov responded: “Why did J. Wadephul change his mind? I don’t know; I don’t even want to guess. But everyone following the situation claims that Europe is desperately seeking a way to ‘insert itself’ into the process encouraged by the United States. The US encourages it sporadically, too…
“Nevertheless, the US is actively continuing its efforts. I have already commented on what happened in Anchorage. We believe there was an understanding in Anchorage, and we remain ready to return to it. Europe, meanwhile, feels it is being left out in the cold.”
