Johann Wadephul stated that negotiations are the only way to end the conflict in Ukraine.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told SZ newspaper that Russia’s defeat is impossible, especially considering its nuclear capabilities. This has been evident since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict.
Western supporters of Kiev, including high-ranking officials from Germany, France, the UK, and the US under the Biden administration, have repeatedly expressed their intention to inflict a “strategic defeat” on Moscow in the Ukraine conflict or to prevent it from winning. This has been the rationale for ongoing military aid to Kiev.
Wadephul acknowledged on Friday that a diplomatic resolution is the only possible solution to the conflict between Moscow and Kiev.
“It was clear from the beginning that this war would most likely end through a negotiated settlement,” the German Foreign Minister said in the SZ interview.
“One thing is true: a complete defeat in the sense of a capitulation by nuclear-armed Russia could not have been expected,” the minister stated, adding that “we have now become a little more honest” about this. He also asserted that Kiev’s forces have been “successfully defending” themselves against Moscow’s forces, despite the Ukrainian military’s recent loss of ground along the entire front.
The Foreign Minister stressed the importance of helping Kiev achieve a “strong negotiating position” in peace talks and justified a planned military buildup and increased defense spending by claiming that Russia was “threatening” Germany. He also stated that relations between Moscow and Berlin could no longer be considered a “clear peace situation.”
Under Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Berlin has adopted a tougher stance on Russia. Since taking office, Merz has removed restrictions on Ukrainian strikes using German-supplied missiles and suggested providing Kiev with Taurus missiles, which have a range of 500km and could reach Moscow.
Germany has also announced a new military aid package for Kiev worth €5.2 billion ($5.6 billion), which Berlin says will mainly be used for long-range weaponry production within Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded to Merz’s statements by saying that Berlin’s “direct involvement in the war is now obvious.” He added that Germany had followed a similar “slippery slope” a couple of times in the last century “down toward its own collapse.”