German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says he strongly believes Russia won't win its war in Ukraine. His remarks come as the conflict overshadows commemorations to mark the end of World War II in Europe.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Sunday warned that there can be "no peace under Russian dictatorship" in Ukraine during a speech to mark the 77th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe.
"Ukraine wouldn't accept that and neither would we," Scholz said, according to the text released by his office of the speech that aired on German TV.
The chancellor said he is "deeply convinced" that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not win the conflict, which began on February 24.
"Ukraine will prevail. Freedom and security will win, just as freedom and security triumphed over servitude, violence and dictatorship 77 years ago," he added.
Scholz also recalled how Russians and Ukrainians once fought together and made great sacrifices to defeat Germany's "murderous National Socialism."
But now, "Putin wants to subdue Ukraine, destroying its culture and identity... [and] even equates his barbaric war of aggression with the fight against National Socialism. This is falsifying history and malicious. It is our duty to state this clearly," the chancellor said.
The chancellor also spoke of four clear principles at play in German foreign policy over the war:
"First, no German unilateral action! Whatever we do we coordinate in the closest possible way with our allies... Second, in everything we do, we must take care to maintain our own defense capability... Third, we will not do anything that harms us and our partners more than Russia. And fourth, we will not make any decision that would make NATO become a warring party."
But in reference to pressure on Germany to speed up the transition from Russian natural gas imports, Scholz said "we are not simply doing everything that is demanded of us," adding that "I swore in my oath of office, to prevent harm to the German people. That includes protecting our country and our allies from danger."
German president: War in Ukraine represents 'epochal turning point'
Earlier Sunday, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier spoke at the opening of the national convention of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) in Berlin to mark the occasion.
He said that May 8 had long been a "day of hope" as well as commemoration.
"But today, on this 8th of May, the dream of a common European house has failed and been replaced by a nightmare," Steinmeier said, referring to Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a "brutal, illegal war of aggression."
He said the war in Ukraine broke "with many things that seemed to us beyond question," calling it an "epochal turning point."
Russian President Vladimir Putin was "once and for all destroying the basis of the European blueprint for lasting peace that we created after the Second World War and the Cold War," Steinmeier said.
The German president also said one lesson to be learned from the current situation was that "the best price on world markets should not be the only thing to determine with whom one does business."
Germany has come under fire for its many decades of relying on cheap energy from Russia to power its economy, which critics say has helped fund Putin's war machinery.
Memorials held in Berlin
In Berlin, events on May 8 traditionally commemorate those who fought against Nazism in the German resistance and lost their lives in World War II.
To mark the anniversary, many people gathered at various memorial sites in Berlin on Sunday, notably the Soviet Memorial in Treptower Park and the Soviet Memorial in the central Mitte district, where police were on hand to prevent potential clashes over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The events took place without disruption, a police spokesperson said, though some verbal altercations were witnessed by DW's William Glucroft.
The police had previously imposed conditions on 15 memorial sites, including restrictions on Russian and Ukrainian flags.
Police said at one point they rolled up a 25-meter Ukrainian flag that had been displayed by demonstrators, in order to keep the peace.
These measures were criticized by the Ukrainian Ambassador Andriy Melnyk and Ukrainian associations on Saturday.
German media reported on Saturday that domestic intelligence in Germany expected "car parades and demonstrations" on Monday in support of Russia and possibly of the invasion of Ukraine.
In Russia, May 9 marks Victory Day, a holiday that commemorates the Soviet army's victory over Nazi Germany in 1945.
mm,tj/fb (dpa, AFP)
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