Germany Report: Trump warns Putin - Scholz plans talks
While US President-elect Donald Trump is said to have already spoken personally with Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also wants to resume talks with Moscow "soon". "Yes, I have resolved to speak to the Russian president at the right time," said the SPD politician on the ARD program "Caren Miosga". "But I'm a responsible politician, I'm not doing this on my own," he added.
11.11.2024, 05:37
SDA
Meanwhile, following the surprise advance of its own troops into Russian territory near Kursk, Ukraine is now expecting a counter-offensive soon. Moscow has already assembled around 50,000 soldiers for this purpose, reports the New York Times, citing American and Ukrainian military officials. In addition to Russian soldiers, North Korean units are also ready to attack. Pyongyang has sent over 10,000 soldiers to Russia to support Moscow in the fight against Ukraine.
According to American information, these soldiers have now been dressed in Russian uniforms and have also received corresponding weapons and equipment from the Russian side. However, the North Koreans remain in their own national units.
Report: Trump warns Putin
Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported on Sunday, citing informed sources, that Trump had already spoken to Putin on the phone on Thursday. He had advised Putin not to escalate the war of aggression against Ukraine. There was initially no information on this from Trump himself.
Trump also referred to the US military presence in Europe, according to the anonymous sources. The aim was also to achieve peace in Europe. Trump had suggested further talks to discuss a solution to the war. The Ukrainian government had been informed about the talks and had no objections, wrote the Washington Post.
Republican Trump had announced during the election campaign that he would end the war in Ukraine quickly. He has not yet said how he intends to achieve this. US President Joe Biden and Ukraine fear that under Trump, US military aid to Ukraine could dry up, thanks to which the Russian invasion can be fended off.
There has been radio silence between Biden and Putin since the Russian attack on Ukraine in February 2022. According to an unconfirmed report in the Wall Street Journal, Trump spoke to Putin several times in recent years as ex-president. Trump will be sworn in for a second term as president on January 20.
Scholz: Include Ukraine
Scholz went on to say that talks with Putin would require many contacts and discussions with many others. The situation must also be discussed with Ukraine. When asked when the right time would be for talks with Putin, Scholz replied: "Soon." Scholz had already emphasized his willingness to talk to Putin about a just peace in Ukraine in mid-October.
He last spoke to Putin on the phone in December 2022. He had called for a diplomatic solution and the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. In June, Scholz did not want to rule out talks with Putin in the future, but said at the time that talks would only make sense if there was something concrete to talk about. At the beginning of October, Moscow in turn declared that Putin was open to a dialog, even if relations between Moscow and Berlin were effectively at a standstill.
Borrell: Punish Russian war crimes even after peace has been concluded
Meanwhile, EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell called for Russian war crimes to be punished even after a peace agreement. "We must help Ukraine to achieve a just and lasting peace that includes accountability," he wrote on Platform X. So far, 140,000 cases of war crimes have been registered. The Russian perpetrators must be held accountable.
In Jahidne, the Russian attackers had held an entire village - 370 people - in a school basement for a month in 170 square meters of space. "Their ordeal takes us back to the darkest days of European history." It is a cruel reminder of what life under Russian occupation was like for ordinary Ukrainians. The village is located around 100 kilometers north-east of Kiev and 10 kilometers south of the city of Chernihiv. Russian troops occupied Jahidne during the invasion in 2022, expanded positions and mined the area.
Selensky praises drone troops
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised his drone troops and special forces for their warfare. "Everyone can see how it works," said Zelensky in his evening video address, just a few hours after a drone attack against targets in the Russian capital Moscow. According to official information, five people were injured in the attack; according to Russian sources, all the drones were shot down. The information could not be independently verified.
As Western partners do not allow Kiev to use heavy weapons, such as missiles or cruise missiles, against military targets on Russian territory, the Ukrainian armed forces use combat drones instead. Kiev has recently developed drones with a long range.
Russian troops continue attacks in eastern Ukraine
The Russian military once again attempted to penetrate the Ukrainian defense lines around Kurakhove on the edge of the Donbass. Of a total of 108 Russian attacks along the front in eastern Ukraine, 39 were carried out in the Kurakhove section, as the General Staff in Kiev announced in its evening situation report. The Russian attacks, which were accompanied by artillery, were repelled. The information could not be independently verified. Russian troops have been massively attacking this section of the front for weeks in an attempt to achieve a breakthrough. Similarly heavy fighting was reported from the nearby Pokrovsk region.
Allegedly high Russian losses
According to British Chief of Staff Tony Radakin, the Russian armed forces suffered their heaviest losses since the start of the war in October. In an interview with the BBC, Radakin said that Russia had suffered an average of 1,500 dead or wounded per day for small territorial gains. Radakin spoke of possibly 700,000 dead and wounded on the Russian side so far. Moscow and Kiev are keeping their own actual casualty figures secret, as is Kiev.
