Withdrawal of Russian troops the basis for peace in Ukraine: Scholz

As Russia's unprovoked war in Ukraine drags on, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he does not think a peaceful resolution is yet in sight, reported dpa.

Scholz said that while it has been possible, at times, to bring key players to the table for discussions, Germany must not turn away from the daily brutality of the war.

"This takes effort and time," Scholz said of peace negotiations. "Time that we don't actually have, because in the meantime Russia continues to bomb, torture and kill in Ukraine."

As a basis for any peace, Scholz said, "the Russian leadership must realize that it is about withdrawing troops. Then there will be the possibility for talks, and the Ukrainian government will participate, I am sure of that."

More than 18 months after Moscow launched the invasion, the chancellor refuted "narratives" that a ready-made peace deal had already been negotiated between Ukraine and Russia in the spring of 2022 but had been scuttled by the United States or Britain.

"No, that is not true," Scholz said.

He said that any "common understanding" that might have been found in the earliest days of the war "was destroyed because the Russian president only used the time to lead his troops around Ukraine after the failure of the attack on the capital Kiev and to begin the attack on eastern Ukraine."