The Bundestag called Russia an aggressor and a party to the conflict in eastern Ukraine
Deputies of the German Bundestag express unequivocal support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, and called Russia an aggressor and a party to the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
According to a Ukrinform correspondent, this happened during the discussion of the attitude of the German federal government to the concentration of Russian armed forces on the state border of Ukraine.
Deputies from the CDU / CSU faction, which initiated the debate, called on the new parliamentary and government coalition (Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals) to give a clear signal to Moscow that Russian aggression is unacceptable and another violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty in any form. “We must give Putin a signal of unity with our Western partners.” We are on the side of Ukraine, and we must resist any military intervention, ”said Johann David Wadeful, the leader of the CDU MP.
He responds that the federal government is committed to fulfilling its commitment to NATO to achieve 2% of GDP in defense assistance.
The representative of the SPD MP Niels Schmid assures that the new federal government is aware of Germany’s special responsibility for the implementation of the Minsk agreements, the work of a normal format. He decided that “Russia must realize its responsibility, because it should not be the case that the Russian government presents the war in the east as an internal Ukrainian conflict, and itself – as an infantry mediator. No! Russia is a party to the conflict, Russia is an aggressor, Russia has violated international law and seriously shaken the European peace order, “Schmid said. The Social Democrat reminded that the new government and Chancellor Scholz have clearly stated from the first day of Ukraine’s work that Russia’s aggression against it will have consequences, including new sanctions. He is also looking for diplomatic solutions to small steps that lead to a peaceful solution.
Free Democratic Party MP Alexander Graf Lambsdorff accused Russia of “using the military as a foreign policy tool.” At the same time, the ruling party is a creation that “aims to work together through diplomacy” and that Russia’s policy towards Russia must be a common European and Euro-Atlantic one. He welcomed the fact that before the talks with Putin, Washington held consultations with NATO allies, including Germany and Ukraine.
Opposition parties in the country – the Alternative for Germany and the Left – have tried to criticize Ukraine’s supply of defense weapons, which allegedly provokes Russia, and its sanctions policy, which they say is only escalating. At the same time, even these parties do not question Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
In response to allegations of “provocation”, Green politician Jurgen Trittin said that “it is not NATO that has deployed about 100,000 soldiers ready for action at the border, and it does not matter what the purpose is: to prepare for an invasion or to banal blackmail of Ukraine.” , this is incompatible with the spirit and letter of the Treaty on Security and Cooperation in Europe, to which Russia is a signatory. He condemned Putin’s use of destabilization in Europe to simulate playing in the same league with the United States in a grand world rostrum. game. “Europe will not only not curtail its political and economic cooperation with Ukraine, but it will develop with Ukraine, we want to hold it with Ukraine, so a stable and prosperous Ukraine is in Europe’s interests,” he said, adding that good relations with Ukraine are not directed “against anyone”, including not against Russia.
Other deputies who needed to revive the Normandy format spoke in a similar vein.
Ambassador of Ukraine to Germany Andriy Melnyk was present at the plenary session, which became the first foreign policy debate of the Bundestag of this convocation. He hopes this will be a powerful signal from Berlin to Moscow.