Germany's Scholz Says Planning To Hold Phone Talks With Russia's Putin

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 26th May, 2023) German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is planning to hold a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin "in due course."

"It has been a while since my last phone conversation (with the Russian president). But I am planning to talk to Putin again in due course," Scholz told German newspaper Koelner Stadt-Anzeiger.

The last time the German and Russian heads of state held bilateral negotiations was on December 2, 2022. Putin and Scholz discussed different aspects of the situation around Ukraine during their phone conversation and the Russian president explained in detail Russia's fundamental approaches to the military operation it launched in Ukraine in February of that year.

The phone talks were held at the initiative of the German side.

In September 2022, Scholz said that negotiations with Putin were always amicable in tone despite the leaders' widely diverging opinions. The German leader also noted the importance of maintaining dialogue with Russia, naming some of the topics addressed in talks.