Germany's defence minister sees no signs Russia is seriously seeking peace

- 31 January, 18:05
Борис Пісторіус, фото Getty Images

Germany's Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has said he doubts that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is genuinely seeking peace.

Source: Pistorius in an interview with the RND media group, as reported by European Pravda with reference to Deutsche Welle, a German international broadcaster and media outlet

Details: Pistorius said that although US President Donald Trump has injected fresh momentum into diplomatic efforts, Russia's recent actions suggest Moscow is not genuinely seeking peace.

"So far, [...] I see no signs that Russia seriously wants peace," Pistorius said, noting that even during the recent US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi, Putin attacked Ukraine "in a way that has hardly been seen in this war".

Pistorius also dismissed claims by the Kremlin that its attacks have never targeted civilians or civilian infrastructure, saying: "This is terror directed exclusively at the civilian population during a winter with temperatures of minus 20 degrees [Celsius]."

Pistorius added that Putin has shown no willingness to compromise.

Background:

  • On 30 January, Trump once again said he sees a chance for successful negotiations to end the Russo-Ukrainian war.
  • Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Trump had personally asked Putin to pause strikes on Kyiv and would comply with it until 1 February. Trump said he had requested a one-week pause but did not specify when it would begin.
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russia has almost entirely refrained from attacking Ukraine's energy infrastructure since the start of 30 January.

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