German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President of the European Commission have proposed launching a new “Marshall Plan” for the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine.
This is stated in a joint article published in the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper.
“We are already thinking about rebuilding the country, even if peace still seems far away. Ukraine needs the prospect that it will be able to grow economically again as soon as the war is over,” the article says.
In their opinion, neither Ukraine nor individual partners are able to cope with the damage received on their own, since the preliminary amount reaches at least 350 billion euros. In this regard, Scholz and von der Leyen proposed launching an “inclusive donor platform” that would allow more transparent allocation of funds to restore the destruction in Ukraine.
US President Joe Biden on Sunday held a telephone conversation with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, during which the leaders discussed assistance to Ukraine and the situation on the global energy market, the White House said.
“President Biden spoke today with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz,” the statement said.
It notes that the heads of state discussed the situation in Ukraine, as well as “the obligation to provide assistance to Ukraine in the field of economy and security.”
According to the White House, Biden and Scholz also discussed “recent developments in global energy markets and the importance of securing stable and affordable energy supplies.”
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that he had met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to discuss support for Ukraine and assistance.
“Friends! I met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. We talked about the support of Ukraine by European partners and the necessary assistance. Weapons, economic, financial assistance and more powerful and more effective sanctions against the Russian aggressor. And also – support by the European community for Ukraine’s candidacy for EU membership,” – wrote Klitschko on Facebook.
He emphasized the importance of the fact that world leaders visit Ukraine and see for themselves the consequences of the barbaric actions of the Russian Federation.
“International partners must understand that appeasing the aggressor will only whet his appetites. And the war will spread to the EU countries. Therefore, Ukraine, which has taken the blow of imperial evil and is heroically defending itself, needs help today and now!” the mayor added.
According to the published video, boxer Wladimir Klitschko was also present at the meeting.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz criticized Ukraine’s refusal to receive German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier for a visit, calling it “somewhat confusing,” reports Der Tagesspiegel.
“The federal president would like to visit Ukraine. Therefore, it would be good to receive him,” Scholz said on Wednesday on rbb24 radio.
At the same time, Scholz did not answer the question whether he would accept the existing invitation to Kyiv.
Later, the chancellor also urged not to underestimate the fact that Germany supplies anti-aircraft missiles and many other military goods to Ukraine.
“Taking responsibility means: Germany is supplying Ukraine with anti-aircraft missiles and many other military goods. Important and not to be underestimated: we are closely coordinating this with all our allies. We are not doing this alone,” Scholz wrote on Twitter on Wednesday .
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GERMAN CHANCELLOR, GERMAN PRESIDENT, STEINMEIER, TAGESSPIEGEL
Ukraine does not have too high expectations from the visit of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Ukraine, but this will be the first long substantive conversation between the German Chancellor and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, where they synchronize their positions, with which the Chancellor will go to Moscow, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba has said.
“We are positive about the fact that Chancellor Scholz will visit Kyiv first, before visiting Moscow. We do not have any too high expectations, but this will be the first long substantive conversation between the German Chancellor and the President of Ukraine, where they really synchronize their position with which the chancellor will go to Moscow,” Kuleba said at a press conference in Kharkiv on Friday, answering a question from Interfax-Ukraine.
He stressed that Scholz’s visit to Ukraine is extremely important. “We hope that it [the visit] will exceed our expectations,” Kuleba added.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel will visit Ukraine on August 22, spokesperson of the Ukrainian President Serhiy Nykyforov has said.
“The Federal Chancellor of Germany, Mrs. Angela Merkel, intends to visit Ukraine on August 22. The topics of the talks: security, bilateral relations and other topical issues,” Nykyforov said on Facebook.
