Former Chancellor Schröder meets Putin: "The Kremlin wants a negotiated solution"
Created: 08/05/2022 04:46
By: Patrick Mayer, Bettina Menzel, Stephanie Munk, Andreas Schmid
Former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder spoke to Vladimir Putin again.
He reports "good news".
The news ticker on the negotiations in the Ukraine war.
Grain
freighter inspected in
Istanbul
: journey to Lebanon continues
Gerhard
Schröder
meets
Putin
: "The Kremlin wants a negotiated solution"
Russia
accuses the United States of being directly involved in
the war
: Washington is said to provide close support to Kiev.
This
news ticker
on the diplomatic negotiations in the
Ukraine war
has ended.
All current information can be found
here
.
Update from August 3, 12:53 p.m
.: The news that former Chancellor Schröder in Moscow again negotiated with Putin about the Ukraine war caused a sensation.
Afterwards Schröder said the Russian President wanted a "negotiated solution".
The Chairwoman of the Defense Committee in the Bundestag, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (FDP), now criticizes Schröder's statement: "If he says that Putin wants a solution, then I can tell you today what the solution should look like," said her in the program "Frühstart" by RTL and ntv.
"Namely, Putin wants eastern Ukraine."
Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, Chair of the Defense Committee.
© Kay Nietfeld/dpa
Strack-Zimmermann also said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had announced that Ukraine would be wiped off the map.
"As such, I listen more to what Mr. Lavrov says, with great seriousness, than what the former Chancellor says."
Update from August 3, 12:45 p.m .:
How far do Putin’s fantasies of conquest go?
A post that appeared on the profile of Russian ex-president Medvedev does not end after Ukraine: There is talk of a new Russian empire modeled on the Soviet Union - including threats against other neighboring countries.
However, Medvedev does not want to be responsible for the news.
Update from August 3, 12:37 p.m .:
During his visit to the Nord Stream 1 turbine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz explained that nothing stood in the way of the turbine being transported onward.
Only Russia would still have to approve the delivery - but there are "always advanced reasons".
Read more about Scholz's visit to the turbine here.
Grain freighter inspected in Istanbul - journey to Lebanon continues
Update from August 3, 12:20 p.m .:
A group of experts has inspected the first ship off Istanbul that has been able to leave with a load of grain since the beginning of the Ukraine war.
Around 20 experts from Turkey, Russia, Ukraine and the UN were involved in the inspection of the Razoni freighter, according to the Turkish Ministry of Defense.
The ship can now continue to the Lebanese port of Tripoli.
The “Razoni” took off from the Ukrainian port of Odessa on Monday morning with 26,000 tons of corn on board.
also read
Medvedev's post reveals vision of new Russian empire - threats against nearby countries
'Corrupt and bankrupt': ex-general dismantles Putin's army – 'armed group of thugs'
Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations arrive at the cargo ship Razoni for inspection.
© Khalil Hamra/AP/dpa
Former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder meets Putin: SPD politician sees possibility for negotiated solution
Update from August 3, 6:14 a.m .:
Former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (SPD) has confirmed another meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"The good news is that the Kremlin wants a negotiated solution," he said, summing up the meeting to
Stern
magazine and RTL/ntv broadcaster.
You can read more about the Schröder-Putin meeting here.
Former Chancellor Schröder was in Moscow last week.
A first success is the grain agreement.
"Perhaps this can slowly be expanded into a ceasefire," said the former chancellor in an interview published on Wednesday.
He pointed out that "there was already a negotiation approach in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia," for example in Istanbul in March.
"The Turks were very helpful, just as they are currently very helpful in negotiations about grain deliveries."
As a private person, he could not end the conflict, even if he had one or the other opportunity to "share a few thoughts with the people involved".
So he thinks it's good that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tried to mediate.
"But it won't work without a yes from Washington," Schröder continued.
Chancellor Scholz inspects the turbine serviced for the Nord Stream 1 natural gas pipeline
Update from August 3, 6:13 a.m .:
A turbine has become a symbol for the dispute over gas supplies from Russia to Germany.
On the way from Canada to Russia, it is currently stuck in Mülheim an der Ruhr, but is actually intended for Nord Stream 1.
On Wednesday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) made his way to Siemens Energy in Mühlheim an der Ruhr to inspect the turbine that was being serviced for the natural gas pipeline.
A press appointment with Scholz and the CEO of Siemens Energy, Christian Bruch, is planned for 9.30 a.m.
US government imposes new sanctions on Kremlin-affiliated oligarchs
Update from August 2, 10 p.m.:
The US government in Washington has imposed new sanctions on oligarchs close to the Kremlin.
The punitive measures caused "high costs for those who support President Vladimir Putin's war," the US Treasury Department said on Tuesday.
Among those affected is the former gymnast Alina Kabaeva.
The 2004 Olympic champion now runs the large Russian media company NMG.
The tabloids suspect that Kabaeva has an affair with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The 39-year-old is already on an EU sanctions list because she is “closely connected” to the president.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and gymnast Alina Kabaeva at a reception in 2004 (archive photo).
© Presidential Press Service/dpa
Russia accuses US of direct involvement in the war - "undeniable"
Update from August 2, 7:40 p.m.:
Russian officials have accused the US government of being directly involved in the Ukraine war.
The allegations were triggered by an interview with the head of the Ukrainian military intelligence service, Vadym Skibitsky.
In this he explained the use of the US Himar multiple rocket launchers in eastern Ukraine, as reported by the British newspaper
The Guardian
.
These could be used so efficiently above all because Kyiv has excellent satellite images and real-time information.
Skibitsky further stated that there would be consultation between US and Ukrainian intelligence services before air strikes.
Washington should even have the right to veto the selection of Russian targets.
It has long been suspected that the United States and Ukraine are working together on reconnaissance.
The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement regarding the interview: "All of this proves indisputably that Washington - contrary to the claims of the White House and Pentagon - is directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine." The Biden administration is "Directly responsible for all rocket attacks approved by Kyiv on residential areas and civilian infrastructure in the populated areas of the Donbass and other regions, which have led to mass deaths of civilians." There was initially no reaction from Washington until Tuesday evening.
Ukraine-News: First ship with Ukrainian grain reaches Turkish coast
Update from August 2, 6:45 p.m .:
The first ship with grain from Ukraine reached the Turkish coast on Tuesday evening.
As the AFP news agency reports, the freighter will shortly enter the Bosphorus.
On Wednesday, the ship is to be examined by representatives of the UN, Russia and Ukraine.
At a meeting in Turkey last week, representatives from Moscow and Kyiv agreed to end the grain blockade.
Ukraine news: Medvedev blames hacker attack for aggressive post on social media platform
August 2 update, 4:42 p.m.:
In an aggressive post on his official profile, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev questioned the sovereignty of former Soviet republics.
The long message was published on Tuesday night (August 2nd).
Medvedev then explained the post as a hacker attack.
The post appeared on Medvedev's profile on the Russian social network VKontakte and was deleted after a few minutes.
It said, among other things, that "all the peoples who once inhabited the great and powerful USSR will again live together in friendship".
Kazakhstan has also been labeled an "artificial state" and accused of "genocide" against the Russian minority in the country.
Moscow had made similar allegations to justify the Ukraine war.
It went on to say that Georgia "didn't exist" before it became part of the Russian Empire in the 19th century.
Vladimir Putin (left) and Dmitry Medvedev go to a cabinet meeting.
© Dmitry Astakhov/dpa
Now, a spokesman for the ex-Russian president said that the administrators of "VKontakte" would "take care of those who hacked the page, wrote and published the deleted message." The message went to 2.2 million Medvedev followers on the Platform.
Medvedev - today Vice-Chairman of the Russian Security Council - regularly attracts attention with aggressive statements in which he describes Russia's opponents as "assholes" and "degenerates" or considers the use of nuclear weapons.
Because of the "liver sausage" slogan: Ukrainian Ambassador Melnyk asks Scholz to meet
Update from August 2, 2:25 p.m .:
The Ukrainian ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnyk, is a man of pithy words and has caused some scandals in recent months – among other things, he had dubbed the German Chancellor “offended liver sausage”.
Background: Scholz had refused to travel to Kyiv because German President Steinmeier had previously been disinvited by Ukraine.
Steinmeier had not only attacked Melnyk personally once.
The outgoing ambassador - he is being transferred from the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs - seems to regret at least his statements about Scholz: he is now offering the chancellor an apology.
Melnyk said on Tuesday on Bild TV that he had asked the Chancellery to speak to Scholz about his imminent departure from Germany: "If the Chancellor would receive me before leaving, I would apologize to him" - for that he called him "offended liverwurst".
Melnyk himself described the prospect of a personal meeting with Scholz as uncertain: "Let's see, I hope so." But it is "good manners when someone leaves that they are also received".
The Ukrainian admitted to being offended by his appearance in Germany.
"My main wish remains and is to strengthen relations with Germany, even if it didn't always appear that way," he asserted.
He and his family loved Germany and its culture: "It's hard for us to say goodbye."
Russia warns of failed grain deal with Ukraine
Update from August 2, 2:05 p.m .:
The first grain cargo ship has just left Ukraine since the beginning of the war, when Russia is again warning of a possible failure of the grain agreement.
The agreement on grain exports has a "package character," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, according to the Interfax agency.
"That's why we warn against attempts to delay or not to fulfill the second part of the package," she said, referring to the prospect of easing some sanctions against Russia.
About a week and a half ago, Moscow and Kyiv, through international mediation, agreed on an agreement to release grain exports from Ukraine, which had been blocked for months because of Russia's war of aggression.
Russia has consistently said it expects in return that its grain, food and fertilizer exports can also resume in full force.
Update from August 2, 1:37 p.m .:
In view of the tensions surrounding an expected visit by US top politician Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, Russia has declared its solidarity with China.
"Everything in connection with this tour and the possible visit to Taiwan naturally carries a highly provocative note," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the Interfax agency.
"We want to emphasize once again that we are absolutely in solidarity with China."
Russia classifies Azov regiment as "terrorist" - Mariupol fighters are now threatened with even worse
Update from August 2, 12:55 p.m .:
The Russian judiciary classifies the Ukrainian Azov regiment as a “terrorist organization”.
This was decided by the Supreme Court of Russia.
The Azov paramilitary units are classified as "terrorist" and their activities are banned in Russia, a judge told the Russian news agency Tass.
The decision could mean very harsh punishment for the members of the Azov regiment captured by Russia, best known for its bitter fighting over the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol.
According to the Russian Criminal Code, members of "terrorist" groups can be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison, leaders and organizers up to 20 years.
The Azov regiment is a former volunteer battalion controversial for its links to far-right extremists and labeled a "neo-Nazi" group by Russia.
Azov fighters are deployed alongside Ukrainian soldiers to push back Russia's "denazification" military offensive in Ukraine.
Men of the Azov Regiment in June 2022 in Zaporizhia.
© IMAGO/Andriy Andriyenko
New US study: Russian economy "paralyzed" by sanctions
Update from August 2, 12:39 p.m .:
According to a recent study, western sanctions are having a serious impact on the Russian economy.
According to the recently published report by the Yale School of Management, the sanctions “not only worked” but “thoroughly paralyzed the Russian economy at all levels”.
The 118-page study was written by economists and management experts who used data from companies, banks and trading partners of Russian companies.
The US researchers see Russia facing an “unsolvable” problem in the event that European states become independent of Russian natural gas, since 83 percent of Russian energy exports have so far gone to Europe.
"Russia is much more dependent on Europe than Europe is on Russia," the report says.
The sanctions imposed by Western countries and the exodus of international companies have brought a large part of economic activity in Russia to a standstill.
Domestic production has “come to a complete standstill”, there is “no capacity to replace the necessary companies, products and talent.” Around 1,000 foreign companies have left the country, which means the loss of up to five million jobs.
Retail sales and consumer spending have recently fallen by 15 to 20 percent compared to the previous year.
The study cites the car industry as a particularly drastic example: sales figures have fallen from 100,000 to 27,000 per month, and because parts from abroad are missing, cars are being manufactured without airbags, automatic transmissions and safety systems such as ABS.
Update vom 2. August, 12.26 Uhr: Das erste mit ukrainischem Getreide beladene Frachtschiff seit Beginn des Ukraine-Kriegs setzt seinen Weg über die Türkei in den Libanon fort. Die mit rund 26.000 Tonnen Mais aus der Ukraine beladene „Razoni“ soll am Mittwochmorgen in Istanbul von Vertretern der Ukraine, Russlands, der Türkei und den Vereinten Nationen inspiziert werden. Mit der Ankunft des Frachters in Istanbul wird in der Nacht zu Mittwoch gerechnet. Mit den Lieferungen aus der Ukraine sollen Millionen Tonnen Getreide wieder für den Weltmarkt verfügbar werden.
Der Massengutfrachter „Razoni“ verlässt den Hafen von Odessa. Das unter der Flagge Sierra Leones fahrende Schiff befördert rund 26.000 Tonnen ukrainisches Getreide in den Libanon. © Michael Shtekel/AP/dpa"Nuclear war would have no winners": Putin protests against first strike
Update from August 2, 6:41 a.m
.: Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin has countered growing fears that Moscow could possibly use nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
"We assume that there can be no winners in a nuclear war and it must never be started," Putin wrote in a greeting published on the Kremlin website Aug. 1.
The greeting was addressed to the participants of the UN Conference on the Review of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in New York.
Russia will stick to its obligations under the treaty.
Recording from August 1: Putin at a conference call in Moscow © Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin Pool/dpa
Ukraine News: Poland's President Duda criticizes Merkel's dealings with Putin
Update from August 1, 10:40 p.m .:
In an interview, Polish President Andrzej Duda attacked former Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) because of her dealings with Moscow ruler Vladimir Putin.
Poland also has something to criticize about Germany when it comes to the exchange of armored rings with the Ukraine.
Russia's nuclear threats: Clear criticism from Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens)
Update from August 1, 8:20 p.m .:
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has sharply condemned Russia’s nuclear threats to the United Nations and campaigned for the disarmament of nuclear weapons.
Russia has repeatedly used "reckless nuclear rhetoric" jeopardizing efforts of the past 50 years to contain nuclear weapons, she said Monday in her speech at the UN Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference.
With Ukraine, Russia attacked a country without nuclear weapons, "brutally violating" earlier assurances.
Despite the heightened threat situation, Baerbock advocated concrete disarmament steps.
"I am here to defend the rules-based international order," she said.
"There is a lot at stake for us and for future generations." For her, the goal of the conference is a commitment to the principles of the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
For more than 50 years, the agreement has formed the basis for controlling the approximately 13,000 nuclear weapons worldwide.
It states that only the US, Russia, China, France and the UK can have nuclear weapons.
The four other suspected nuclear powers India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea have either not joined the treaty or have withdrawn from it.
The aim of the treaty is to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, promote nuclear disarmament and promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Serious allegations against Moscow: US Secretary of State Blinken addresses Russia again
Update from August 1, 7:30 p.m .:
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has accused Russia of using its nuclear weapons for ruthless threats of war.
Earlier statements by Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin that military aid could have unprecedented consequences for Ukraine are "dangerous nuclear saber-rattling," said Blinken on Monday at the start of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference in New York.
The statements are contrary to international agreements.
“There is no place in our world for nuclear deterrence based on force and intimidation or blackmail.
We must stand together to reject this.”
The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which is more than 50 years old and to which 191 countries have joined, forms the basis for nuclear disarmament worldwide.
It states that only the US, Russia, China, France and the UK can possess nuclear weapons.
The four other suspected nuclear powers India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea have either not joined the treaty or have withdrawn from it.
The aim of the treaty is to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, promote nuclear disarmament and promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Blinken said the United States would only consider using nuclear weapons in extreme circumstances to defend the vital interests of the United States, its allies and partners.
After the end of the Russian blockade: the first grain ship leaves the port of Odessa
Update from August 1, 6:30 p.m .:
After the end of the Russian blockade in the Black Sea, a first grain ship left the port of Odessa in Ukraine.
According to the ARD “Tagesschau”, the ship is to bring 26,000 tons of corn to Lebanon, where the hunger crisis had recently worsened as a result of the blockade.
The ships that are now sailing would be checked in Turkey to prevent any arms smuggling.
The deliveries were made possible by separate agreements between the warring parties and the United Nations (UN) and Turkey.
According to Ukrainian government information, the country with its approximately 44 million inhabitants intends to ship 15 million tons of grain by the end of the year.
Millions of Ukrainians earn their living in agriculture.
Former Kremlin Special Envoy Anatoly Chubais (left) with Russia's President Vladimir Putin.
The officer is now in the hospital.
© IMAGO/Russian Look (archive photo)
Anatoly Chubais: suspected poisoning - arms and legs "lamed"
First report from August 1st:
Moscow/Cagliari – fuss about a former Putin confidante.
Anatoly Chubais resigned as a Kremlin official after the start of the Ukraine war.
He is now in a hospital in Italy.
According to a report in the Italian daily
La Repubblica
, Chubais is being treated in a clinic on the Mediterranean island of Sardinia, where he is said to have previously been on vacation.
A suspicion of poisoning is being investigated.
At the weekend there were first reports that Chubais had been taken to an intensive care unit.
Russian presenter and former presidential candidate Ksenia Sobchak, citing Chubais' family, said he was in "unstable condition".
Specifically: “He got sick.
His arms and legs suddenly became paralyzed.” According to Sobchak, the room in which Chubais last stayed was examined by “specialists in protective chemical suits”.
These descriptions sparked speculation on social networks that the former confidante of Russian President Vladimir Putin might have been poisoned.
The
Repubblica
also wrote that a suspected poisoning was being investigated.
A possible cause of Tschubais' malaise could also be a rare nervous disease, it said.
Anatoly Chubais
Chubais was "Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation" - and thus a direct confidant of Putin.
He took over the post in 2020. He resigned at the end of March this year – around a month after Russia invaded Ukraine.
According to media reports, he did not agree with Putin's war.
The Kremlin only said at the time that Chubais had left “at his own request”.
In der Vergangenheit gab es immer wieder Fälle von vergifteten Kremlgegnern – darunterder bekannte russische Oppositionelle Alexej Nawalny, der 2020 nur knapp einen Mordanschlag mit dem Nervengift Nowitschok überlebte. Nawalnys Sprecherin Kira Jarmysch äußerte sich nun auch direkt zu dem erkrankten Tschubais: „Das also ist der Ruf des Kremls: Niemand hat größere Zweifel daran, dass Tschubais vergiftet wurde“, schrieb sie auf Twitter.
Kremlsprecher Dmitri Peskow ließ sich von der staatlichen Agentur Interfax wie folgt zitieren: „Das ist natürlich eine traurige Nachricht, wir wünschen ihm baldige Genesung.“
Ukraine-Verhandlungen: Getreide-Blockade beendet
In the meantime, there was an initial agreement in the negotiations on the Ukraine war: the grain blockade is passé.
For the first time since the beginning of the war, a ship with grain left the port of Odessa.
A cargo ship loaded with corn left for Lebanon on Monday.
An agreement on grain exports had previously been negotiated with the help of Turkey and the United Nations.
"That's pretty positive," said Kremlin spokesman Peskov.
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