Vladimir Putin is not ready to discuss mediation on peace in Ukraine with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, German Foreign Minister Annalena Bärbock said at a joint press conference with Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar.

“He refuses to accept peace and every day sends another signal in favor of war and destruction. These days he is not even ready to talk to the German chancellor on the phone,” said Baerbock.

She added that "Ukraine is ready for a just peace."

In early October, the newspaper Die Zeit, citing sources in German government circles, wrote that Scholz plans to talk to Putin by phone ahead of the G20 meeting in Brazil in November. The newspaper claimed that the German side had not yet requested a conversation. The next day, Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov also said that Berlin had not requested a conversation. Later, TASS, citing a source in the German government, wrote that for Scholz such a conversation is “not taboo.” The German chancellor’s readiness to talk with Putin was also confirmed by a Reuters source. The last time the leaders of the two countries spoke directly was in December 2022.
On October 11, Vladimir Zelensky arrived in Berlin. At a meeting with Scholz, he presented his “victory plan” to the German Chancellor. The office of the President of Ukraine added that Zelensky discussed with Scholz support for Ukraine this and next year and called the meeting with him the most important since the full-scale Russian invasion.

The German Foreign Minister said that Putin is “not ready” to talk to Scholz on the phone