Scholz intends to keep calling Putin

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said he intends to continue efforts to end the war against Ukraine, including through direct talks with Vladimir Putin, Welt has reported.

I will also be on the phone with Putin again - because we need to talk to each other," Scholz said, "Putin should withdraw troops from Ukraine and put an end to this horrible, senseless war that has already claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people," he told reporters.

At the same time, Scholz pointed out that Russia has no intention of reducing its aggression.

He noted that in telephone conversations the Russian dictator was not "impolite", but Putin again and again made it clear that he wanted to "annex parts of the neighbouring country by force", which, as the FRG chancellor stressed, was unacceptable.

Sometimes there were specific questions about prisoner exchanges, about grain exports from Ukraine and about the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant," the German chancellor said, "But it is important to me that conversations keep coming back to the current topic - how will the world get out of this awful situation? The premise is clear - the withdrawal of Russian troops.