'Opening Pandora's Box': Volodymyr criticises German chancellor's call with Vladimir Putin

The Ukrainian president said the telephone with the Russian person could unfastened “Pandora’s Box”. 

Mr Zelensky tweeted: “His call, successful my opinion, opens Pandora's Box. Now determination whitethorn beryllium different conversations, different calls. Just a batch of words.

“And this is precisely what Putin has agelong sought. It is captious for him to weaken his isolation, arsenic good arsenic Russia's isolation, and to clasp specified talks that volition pb nowhere. He has been doing this for decades.

“This has allowed Russia to debar making immoderate changes to its policies, efficaciously doing nothing, which has yet led to this war. 

“We recognize each the existent challenges and we cognize what to do.”

German authorities spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit said that the telephone betwixt Mr Scholz and Mr Putin lasted for astir 1 hour, according to Sky.

He said: "The chancellor urged Russia to beryllium consenting to negociate with Ukraine with the purpose of achieving a conscionable and lasting bid and stressed Germany's unwavering determination to enactment Ukraine successful its combat against Russian aggression for arsenic agelong arsenic necessary.”

It was the archetypal telephone betwixt Germany and Mr Putin since December 2022.

The warfare has been raging since Russia’s penetration of Ukraine successful February 2022 and it is present approaching its 1,000th day. 

Mr Zelensky said successful a caller interrogation helium is definite the warfare with Russia volition “end sooner” than it different would person done erstwhile Donald Trump becomes US president.

Zelensky said helium had a “constructive exchange” with Trump during their telephone speech aft his triumph successful the US statesmanlike election.

He did not accidental whether Trump had made immoderate demands regarding imaginable talks with Russia, but said he'd not heard thing from him that was contrary to Ukraine’s position.

Mr Zelensky has said that helium volition not motion immoderate ceasefire that volition compromise his federation - and has ruled retired thing akin to the deals struck successful Minsk to extremity the 2014 conflict. 

Russia was acceptable to look astatine vigor deals if Berlin was interested, the Kremlin said - according to Reuters. 

"It was emphasised that Russia has ever strictly fulfilled its pact and contractual obligations successful the vigor assemblage and is acceptable for mutually beneficial practice if the German broadside shows involvement successful this," the Kremlin said.

Russia shipped immoderate 15 cardinal cubic metres of state via Ukraine successful 2023, astir 8 per cent of highest Russian state flows to Europe via assorted routes successful 2018-2019.

In 2023, the Ukraine transit way met 65 per cent of state request successful Austria and its eastbound neighbours Hungary and Slovakia, according to the International Energy Agency. 

Ukraine has said it doesn't program to widen the transit statement into 2025.

Hungary nary longer receives overmuch state via Ukraine and imports volumes via the TurkStream pipeline that runs on the furniture of the Black Sea. Slovakia inactive receives Russian state via Ukraine.

Gazprom's determination showed Russia flexing its muscles astatine the West arsenic unit builds for a ceasefire successful Ukraine, said Ulrich Schmid, a prof astatine University of St Gallen. 

“Russia apt felt emboldened aft Donald Trump won the US presidency this period pledging to rapidly extremity the Ukraine war,” helium added.