GERMANY VS RUSSIA: Wadephul Warns Europe Against Easing Pressure on Putin | Times Now World

I would also join Radek in looking into the future with an optimistic assessment. So we are more united than we were in the beginning of the war. We have more capabilities than we had at the beginning of the war. And we know what's lying ahead. Of course, the winter will be challenging, but we know what to do. And it's still the case that Russia is not really progressing with the aggressive war against Ukraine. They wanted to do it in three days, and now they are in the fifth year. So I would say realistically looking into the future, Europe really has found its role, and this is also an important step. But Minister, can it lose it? I know it found it. I mean, we've really done so much in the last four and a half years, but the feeling right now is that the tide is turning, that with the electoral circle of 2027, that unity might crack if some governments, already feeling fatigue, their society's fatigue, the taxpayers' burden of this war, might actually, and you see this also in Germany, might actually decide not to support Ukraine. Are you not worried about that? No, I'm not. I'm really not. Because the word fatigue is the first word we heard after, I would say, half a year of the war. Then already it began talking about there will be fatigue, governments will not be able to get the support by their parliaments and by their people in staying with Ukraine. But the opposite happened, and this will also be the case for the future. So I'm really convinced that we will keep that strength and that we will stay with Ukraine in the forthcoming time. You want to start? I know you. yeah i i just wanted to to pick up the point that Admiral Bent made let us please use the very opportunity um with the ceasefire on for the uh energy uh sector also uh still not overlooking what is relevant for the Black Sea and for the grain exports from Ukraine and from Russia to especially North Africa this is still necessary and let us please not forget this and urge Russia also to be ready to enlarge the ceasefire, not only for the energy sector, but also for the Black Sea, because this is needed to really prevent a lot of people in Northern Africa from falling into hunger and so on. So Russian sovereign assets, this is a complicated issue. Everybody knows it, but it is clear for us Russia has to pay for that war. They are the aggressors. They are the ones who are responsible for the damage which is happening to Ukraine. And in the end of the day, they will have to pay. And for the time being, we are finding ways to finance Ukraine. And I would say the European Union really showed that we are able to do it with the funding in this year. And I'm very optimistic that this will go on. Before I go back to the frozen state assets, just one follow-up question. You have just met in New York, Sergei Lavrov. Do you feel that Russia is ready for ceasefires? No, I didn't feel that. And you saw his assessment and his reaction after the conversation. But it shows to the people where Russia really is. Because a lot of people in Europe, and especially in Germany, were asking us and me, why don't you talk to the Russians? So now I had that conversation and you saw the result. It's a very dire result. And it shows that Russia right now is not ready for ceasefire, but still this only can encourage us to stay with Ukraine and to strengthen the pressure on Russia and always be ready for conversations, and also especially for ceasefire negotiations. But until this doesn't happen, we are with Ukraine, we are with the president, as Ed said. The German government is backing the Ukrainian government, and the president completely, he is the person to lead Ukraine, and we are with him. I'm not so sure that Putin really thinks that he's going to win the war. But if the war is not about Ukraine, if it's about the European security order, if it's about having the Americans out, the Ukrainians struggling, the Europeans completely divided, if that is his real game and Ukraine is a sideshow to that. This may also be his real game. Yes, you're right. And we cannot let him win also on this. But I would say directly in the situation on Ukraine, he takes the path which is not the risky one in his assessment. And today he thinks prolonging the war, taking the opportunities he has militarily during the winter is the easier way for him than going now to the negotiation table. So what do we have to do? We have to look to his assessment, to the elements of his thinking, and change the scenario for him and bringing him to the negotiation table, which is only within reach if he recognizes that prolonging the war is the more risky way for him personally or for his regime. So, and this is what we do have to take into account. And if we do so, I would say there's a fair chance of bringing to the negotiation table earlier than later. And China, do you want to talk about China? Because I feel we're missing out. I'll make the China point. You'll make the China. Oh, that's good. I want to hear the German China point. I would also welcome, once again, Sweden and Finland coming from the Baltic Sea as well, very much in NATO. But really, of course, accountability is necessary. It's very important. This is that we are establishing a special tribunal on the war crimes from Russians' hands in Ukraine, in Strasbourg and the Council of Europe. This is very important. And the ICC is workable only because Europe is standing with the ICC and other countries as well. But we are keeping the ICC workability. So this is, I think, very important. And let's not forget on the humanitarian side that a lot of African parties are now on the Russian side, and they are, of course, engaged with telling them, okay, we offer you a working space in Moscow also, and finding themselves in the trenches of a war within two days. And to tell this to the global south is very important, I would say. This is also a humanitarian aspect we should not forget. We are taking real decisions, sir, really, we are doing this. So there is this European loan, which is for Ukraine, which is affordable now, which is within use. And also we have a NATO pledge, we made a NATO pledge for Ukraine. So this is very, very concrete. And also the question with interceptors. We are working on interceptors. So we have new European countries like Greece. We have Asian countries coming with interceptors for Ukraine. This is absolutely concrete. Rather, we do have to become more independent from China. This is absolutely true. We are following up a de-risking strategy from the European Union, using, of course, our free trade agreements with a lot of countries, not only to have trade with these countries, but also to get access to the raw earth funds they do have in their countries. So this is very true, not only for Australia. This is true for the Mercosur countries. This is true for a lot of other countries. But this needs some time. For now, to the question from the Philippines, there is a dependency. unfortunately but we know that and we are working on that it will take some time but it will not discourage us from making clear to China that we expect China which has the greatest influence on the Russian regime to really make them clear that they do have to stop this war and of course I think this very clear and strict position from the European Union and from other European partners is very important. Firstly, say to my dear friends from the left side, the doors for European Union are open. But the key is in your hands. I don't think Ed and I are the problem here. Please, please. Always at your service. No, really, I would say, of course, Russia does have the intention to dominate us, but they don't have the economic power to do so, to prevail. They don't have the economic power. This is very parallel to the 80s of the last century. And they don't have the value and they don't have the political stability which is needed. We are also under attack. This is so true. But on the long run, our values, our system of democracy, rule of law, is more stable than this regime.