Ex-NATO Secretary-General criticizes Germany's position on Russia-Ukraine war

Former NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has criticised Germany's 'hesitant' response to Russia's aggressive 'military operation' against Ukraine. Rasmussen remarked in an interview with Handelsblatt that Germany was "too hesitant to supply heavy weapons and impose sanctions."

"Of course, Germany is heavily dependent on Russian gas imports, but I think a clear position from the federal government would change all the dynamics in Ukraine. We need German leadership," Rasmussen said.

He also urged Europeans to immediately stop importing Russian oil and gas. According to the former NATO Secretary-General, definitely, the energy embargo will have a cost. However, he added that in comparison to the cost of a protracted war, that cost would be minimal. Meanwhile, Andriy Melnyk, the Ukrainian ambassador to Berlin, has frequently chastised Olaf Scholz's government for refusing to send heavy weaponry despite Bundestag approval.

It is worth noting that Scholz has faced criticism for his handling of the war, which some see as weak and overly cautious. Berlin has been chastised for delaying the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine, and Scholz has yet to visit Kyiv, unlike many other European leaders. Scholz declared in February that Russia's invasion of Ukraine was a "turning point," and he announced a significant increase in military spending.

The German government defied tradition by sending arms to Ukraine, but the chancellor was chastised by the opposition and parts of his own coalition for initially hesitating to send heavy weapons and for appearing indecisive at times. Scholz, on the other hand, claimed that Germany has been providing Ukraine with aid and even heavy armaments, as well as accepting Ukrainian refugees.

Russia-Ukraine War

Meanwhile, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has reached day 87, and Ukraine's president has stated that the conflict can only be resolved through "diplomacy." "The end will be through diplomacy," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 21 amid a stalemate in negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow. The war "will be bloody, there will be fighting, but it will only definitively end through diplomacy" he added.

Furthermore, Russia claimed to have captured Mariupol on May 20, following a nearly three-month siege that reduced much of the strategic port city to a smoking ruin, with an estimated 20,000 civilians killed. According to Russian Defence Ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin the "complete liberation" of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, the last stronghold of Ukrainian resistance, and the city as a whole.