Key points
- Scholz vows to uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty
- Russian victory won’t bring peace: German leader
- Vance blasts Europe
ISLAMABAD: German Vice-Chancellor Olaf Scholz sharply criticised US Vice President JD Vance for claiming that European governments enforce anti-democratic policies and suppress critical voices.
He firmly rejected Vance’s assertion that European countries were abandoning democratic principles.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called for negotiations with Russia to respect the “sovereign independence” of Ukraine at the Munich Security Conference.
According to DW, he added that in the future, Ukraine must be enabled to defend itself effectively with extensive military aid.
“At the end of any negotiated settlement, Ukraine must have armed forces forces with which it can fend off any renewed Russian attack. Financially, materially and logistically, this will be an enormous challenge,” Scholz said, noting that Europe and the US will still need to help Ukraine reach this goal.
Scholz said a Russian victory or a collapse of Ukraine would not bring peace.
He reaffirmed Germany’s support for Ukraine saying that Berlin would not support a “dictated peace.”
This came after US President Donald Trump said he had come up with a “peace plan” after a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Accusations
The German chancellor also accused Russia of trying to escalate tensions with other countries in the transatlantic alliance, citing the sabotage of undersea cables and other infrastructure, arson attacks, disinformation and attempts to manipulate democratic elections.
“I must respond to the speech we heard earlier from the US vice president,” the Social Democrat said, adding that while European democrats take a firm stance against right-wing extremism, they remain fully committed to basic rights and freedoms.
Fiery speech
In a fiery speech at the conference earlier on Friday, Vance criticised European politicians, institutions, and courts for what he described as a retreat from democratic principles, DW reported.
Vance specifically criticised the recent annulment of the presidential election result in Romania, arguing that it undermined democratic foundations.
