Diplomatic efforts continue to avert war.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is expected in Kiev on Monday to defuse the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine, likely to trigger the worst crisis in Europe since the Cold War.
The German leader will then travel to Moscow on Tuesday, following in the footsteps of French President Emmanuel Macron last week, as the United States continues to remind that Russia could invade Ukraine "at any time" and that Westerners evacuate their embassies.
Effective threats?
Often accused of being too complacent towards Russia, Germany raised its voice on Sunday.
"We are in the midst of a risk of military conflict, of war in Eastern Europe, and it is Russia that bears the responsibility," said German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Olaf Scholz for his part warned that Western sanctions would be “immediate” in the event of a Russian invasion.
But the threats have so far had no concrete effects.
Moscow "doesn't give a damn" about the sanctions, the Russian ambassador to Sweden, Viktor Tatarintsev, had notably warned a few hours earlier in an interview with the Swedish newspaper
Aftonbladet
.
The situation has reached a “critical” point, further estimated a German government source.
Tensions are indeed at their peak, with 130,000 Russian soldiers massed on the Ukrainian border conducting all-out maneuvers.
It remains to be seen whether this escalation will push Germany to reconsider its reluctance about arms deliveries to Ukraine and about the future of Nord Stream 2, the controversial gas pipeline built to bring Russian gas to its territory bypassing Ukraine. .
The German Chancellor assured last week that the gas pipeline "would not go ahead" in the event of an invasion.
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Germany
Olaf Scholz
Ukraine
Russia
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