German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has called on russian president vladimir putin to withdraw troops from Ukraine immediately, reported by Deutsche Welle.
"Show respect for Ukraine's sovereignty, stop hostilities. Mr. putin, stop the suffering and destruction in Ukraine! Withdraw your troops! And do not refuse direct and serious talks with President Zelensky!" - said Steinmeier, speaking on the occasion of the Day of German Catholics in Stuttgart.
Steinmeier also pointed out that putin's war affects not only people in Ukraine - because Russia is blocking the export of millions of tons of grain in Ukrainian ports, world prices have risen sharply.
"Many regions of the world are threatened with starvation and death in the coming months, especially in East and South Africa," he warned.
Steinmeier said in early April that he "admits his own mistakes" in russia-related policy. He also acknowledged that his commitment to Nord Stream 2 [ 1,234-km natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany running through the Baltic Sea, financed by Gazprom and several European energy companies] was a "clear mistake". The German president explained that his assessment was that putin would not let the complete economic, political and moral destruction of his country because of his imperial madness. I was wrong, as were the others," Steinmeier said.
He also promised that Germany would supply Ukraine with weapons to the war zone, despite the fact that the country until recently professed a "philosophy of security." Germany has already sent a new batch of anti-tank grenade launchers and mines to Ukraine. However, according to Spiegel, Ukraine will receive the first tanks from Germany in July.