War resulted from Russia’s brutal attack, not lack of talks – Scholz
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Do not hope for negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged Slovak PM Robert Fico during a joint press conference in Berlin on Jan. 24.
“I would warn against the idea that the continuation of this terrible war is only due to a lack of speech between Moscow and Kiev,” said Scholz.
Read also: Slovakian military aid for Ukraine is over, but existing contracts will not be revoked
There was certainly no shortage of discussions in the run-up to Feb. 24, 2022, with more than 200 meetings in the Minsk and Normandy formats alone. We all know the result: Russia’s brutal and illegal attack on the entire Ukraine.”
Russia’s war of aggression is directed against the very existence of Ukraine as a sovereign state, he said on behalf of the Federal Government.
“No country longs for peace more than Ukraine,” said the Chancellor.
Read also: Slovak government led by Fico rejects EUR 40 million new military aid package for Ukraine
“But after two years of war, we must also recognize that there is no easy solution in sight. In any case, Russian President Putin can end this war at any time. But if Ukrainians stop defending themselves, it will be the end of Ukraine.”
Germany allocated more than seven billion euros ($7.6 billion) in military aid this year alone and called on the EU countries to independently check what else they can do to further increase support for Ukraine, said Scholz.
“We need a signal about Europe’s determination to support Ukraine. That’s what I’m committed to,” Scholz said.
The Slovak government at the same time does not believe that the war between the Russian Federation and Ukraine can be resolved by military means, Fico said.
Fico met with the head of the Ukrainian PM Denys Shmyhal in Uzhgorod on Jan. 24. He confirmed his opposition to Ukraine’s membership in NATO.
Slovakia will no longer send military aid to Ukraine from its armed forces, but private contracts with the Slovakian military will remain in effect, Slovak parliamentary speaker Peter Pellegrini said.
He has repeatedly stated that Slovakia will stop military aid to Ukraine and focus only on humanitarian support. Fico also claims that “it is better for Ukraine and Russia to negotiate over the next ten years than to kill each other.”
Read also: Thousands of Slovaks protest against the government of Robert Fico
The Slovak leader has previously amplified false Russian narratives, claiming that “the war began in 2014, when Ukrainian Nazis and fascists began killing Russian citizens in Donbas and Luhansk.”
Fico cynically stated that “life in the capital of Ukraine is normal,” after the Russian bombardment of Kyiv on Jan. 23.
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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
