Warning against invasion of Ukraine
Scholz: Russia knows our determination
01/19/2022 3:42 p.m
After his rejection of Ukrainian demands for German arms deliveries, Chancellor Scholz continued to verbally pressure Russia at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The US Secretary of State does the same elsewhere. Will talks still bear fruit?
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has again called on Russia to de-escalate the Ukraine conflict. “The Russian side knows about our determination. I hope they are also aware that the benefits of cooperation are significantly higher than the price of further confrontation,” said the SPD politician at a digital event of the Davos World Economic Forum.
At the same time, Scholz promoted further talks with Russia. “It is not yet clear whether they can contribute to de-escalating the situation that Russia has created by concentrating 100,000 troops on the border with Ukraine,” he said. “But after years of growing tensions, silence is not a sensible option.”
Nevertheless, Scholz apparently continues to talk. Only the day before he had rejected demands from Ukraine for German arms deliveries. “The German federal government has been pursuing a similar strategy on this issue for many years. And that includes not exporting lethal weapons,” said the SPD politician. The new government is sticking to that. Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had previously rejected the request during her visit to Kiev.
Scholz again indirectly warned Russia against an invasion of Ukraine. The fact that borders should not be moved is a basic principle of the European peace order, he said. The strength of the law and not the law of the stronger must apply.
Further talks are pending
At about the same time, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken commented on the Ukraine conflict – and became a little clearer. “It’s about more than Ukraine,” Blinken told US embassy staff during his visit to Kiev, according to the speech transcript. Russia’s aggression called into question the fundamental principles on which the entire international system is based.
Last week Russia held initial talks with the US, NATO and the OSCE. The US and Russian foreign ministers, Antony Blinken and Sergey Lavrov, will meet in Geneva on Friday.
Blinken explained that the principles of the international system are necessary to ensure peace and security. This includes the fact that one nation should not simply use force to change the borders of another. “If we allow these principles to be violated with impunity, we will be opening a very large Pandora’s box and the whole world will be watching what is happening here,” Blinken warned.