Chancellor Scholz Warns Against Excessive Concessions in Ukraine Peace Talks
Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany has cautioned against making excessive concessions to Russia’s demands in negotiations aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
"The next task is to ensure that there is no dictated peace here," Scholz emphasized in a podcast interview with Politico. He stressed the importance of Ukraine having a development perspective even after the fighting ends.
According to Scholz, Ukraine requires "a strong army" that is larger and better equipped than before the war. He expressed confidence that US President Donald Trump will continue to support Ukraine, stating that his conversations with Trump indicate that the US is expected to provide ongoing assistance.
President Trump had a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday evening, agreeing to "immediately" initiate discussions on ending the war.
However, shortly before the call, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced at a meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group in Ramstein that the US does not envision a path to restoring Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders and does not support its future NATO membership. Additionally, the US would not contribute peacekeepers to monitor a potential ceasefire, leaving that task to European countries. Experts doubt that European nations could deploy such a force without US support.
Chancellor Scholz believes that a debate on German participation in such a peacekeeping force is premature. "Everyone knows that this is not an issue right now," Scholz told Politico. He noted that "it is not even clear under what conditions Ukraine would be willing to agree to a peace settlement."
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius criticized Trump’s approach to the dialogue with Putin. He expressed regret that Trump’s administration had "made concessions publicly before negotiations began." Pistorius believes that it would have been more prudent to discuss potential NATO membership or territorial concessions at the negotiating table.
Pistorius also emphasized the need for consultations with Ukraine’s European support countries: "Europe must be involved in the negotiations." He recognized that Germany’s role as Europe’s largest economy made its involvement likely, but that decision would be made by others.
Following Trump’s call with Putin, several European foreign ministers demanded to be included in the negotiations. "Ukraine and Europe must be part of any negotiations," declared the foreign ministers of Germany, France, Poland, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Italy, as well as representatives of the European External Action Service and the European Commission. They also called for "strong security guarantees" for Ukraine.
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, a signatory to the statement, justified the demand for security guarantees based on the history of the conflict. "It is not peace if what happened in 2014 happens again, a preparation for an even more brutal offensive," she said on Deutschlandfunk, referring to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the beginning of the Donbas War eleven years ago. "That is why security guarantees are needed that can be relied upon."
Baerbock also criticized Trump’s approach, calling his call to Putin "very impulsive… and that is how this Trump administration operates." She emphasized that the most important task for European countries was to convey to the US "that it is also in the interests of the Americans to have a strong Europe that acts in partnership with the US."
