Scholz comments on his first phone call with Putin after two years

He talked about this on ZDF TV, as reported by European Pravda.

Scholz mentioned that by the end of 2022, he had spoken with Putin many times, but those conversations were never pleasant. "This time, it was not a pleasant conversation either," he said. "But we must speak, even to hear that."

The chancellor also noted that some people in Germany believe a simple phone call could bring peace overnight. "Of course, this is not the case," he stressed.

Scholz said that in the last telephone conversation, "all the arguments were repeated", and it was important for him to repeat his arguments to the Kremlin leader as well.

"Namely: Mr Putin, do not expect us to reduce our support. You have to find a way out of this war. You must stop your attacks and withdraw your troops," Scholz said. 

• On November 15, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Russian leader Vladimir Putin held their first phone call in nearly two years. According to the German government press service, during the conversation, Scholz condemned Russia's aggression against Ukraine and urged Putin to end the fighting and withdraw Russian troops.