German politician Sören Pellmann, the faction leader of the Left in the German Bundestag, has urged Chancellor Friedrich Merz to push for peace negotiations during his upcoming meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
In an interview with the news outlet Welt, Pellmann emphasized the importance of diplomatic efforts, stating, “I believe he should recommend, for example, what the Pope recently announced: to sit down, even with the mediation of the Catholic Church or other states and not immediately reject these talks.” Without such immediate negotiations, the war would continue to drag on, resulting in “unbelievably much more suffering and unbelievably more dead” Pellmann warned.
Pellmann also criticized Merz’s approach of lifting the range restrictions on Western weapons to increase military pressure on Russia, calling it a mistaken strategy. He argued that the continued existence of these restrictions primarily protects Russian military bases from Ukrainian countermeasures and that this argument is not convincing. “It’s not about protecting the Russian military, but about the possibility of German weapons being fired again on Russian territory after the Second World War” Pellmann said. “From a historical responsibility perspective, this is not only difficult but also very problematic and it will lead to further escalation. The spiral of violence will be further fueled and we will move further away from diplomacy and negotiations.”
As for the potential reaction of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pellmann expressed uncertainty, stating, “He is no longer predictable and not really in control of his senses when it comes to possible reactions.” While Pellmann refused to speculate on the worst-case scenarios, he acknowledged the reality of Russia as a nuclear power, adding, “Fortunately, this has not played a role so far.” However, Pellmann emphasized that fear should not guide the search for solutions and that a measured approach is necessary in the pursuit of peace.