In an interview with ZDF, Wadephul said that the request for a meeting came through colleagues from other countries. He added that he had proposed de-escalation, but this had not yet been received positively, and said that he did not want Europeans to leave all exchanges of views with Russia to the US alone.
In an interview with ARD, the minister said that he still does not see Moscow ready to end the war. According to him, Germany’s support for Ukraine is “absolutely unshakable”, and Russia must sit down at the negotiating table.
Wadephul also confirmed support for Ukraine and the continuation of economic pressure on Russia. He stressed that he is not negotiating on Kyiv’s behalf, but is calling on Moscow to begin dialogue with the Ukrainian side.
The minister warned Russia against repeating drone incidents, such as at Leipzig Airport, and said that Germany was ready to defend itself. Another topic, he said, was ensuring grain exports from Ukraine and Russia.
Lavrov, in turn, said that he had not heard anything new compared with Berlin’s public statements and that the German counterpart could simply have called, Interfax reports. He also said that he had the impression that Wadephul expects concessions on Ukraine and Black Sea shipping security.
According to the Russian Foreign Minister, Moscow is offering India, Turkey, and Egypt separate agreements with guarantees not to strike their ships. The meeting between the foreign ministers of Russia and Germany took place on September 26 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, lasted about 20 minutes, and was the first at the level of the heads of the two countries’ foreign ministries since the start of the war in Ukraine.
During the conversation, the Russian side placed in front of the German delegation a report titled “Goebbels’ Heirs” about the “falsification of events in Bucha”. Relations between Berlin and Moscow have worsened in recent months after a drone with explosives was discovered at Leipzig/Halle Airport, and Germany accused Russia of organizing the attack, which Moscow denies.
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