German Chancellor Olaf Scholz may become the first among the leaders of Ukraine’s key allies to resume direct contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin. It is expected that he may call Putin this November for the first time in two years.
As informs the German publication Die Zeit, citing government sources, said the phone conversation could take place before the G20 leaders meet in Brazil. However, so far the Russian side has not received an official request to organize such a conversation.
Scholz’s last conversation with Putin took place in December 2022. In the same year, leaders of other key countries, including US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and then British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, also had their last direct contacts with the Russian leader.
It should be noted that in July 2023, US Defense Minister Lloyd Austin spoke twice by phone with his Russian colleague Andriy Belousov. Before that, they had not been in contact for several months, since Austin spoke with Belousov’s predecessor, Sergei Shoigu, in March 2023.
According to media reports, during one of those conversations Belousov informed Austin about Ukraine’s alleged preparations for a “covert operation” against Russia, which, according to the Russian representative, was approved by Washington. These statements were taken seriously, and after that the USA turned to the Ukrainian side with a recommendation not to implement the planned operation.
