Chancellor Scholz will not go to Ukraine after German president’s arrival is rejected

Jakarta –

Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday (4/5) openly again discussed the diplomatic dispute between Germany and Ukraine sparked by Kiev’s rejection of the planned visit of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in mid-April.

Scholz is under increasing public pressure to visit Kiev. However, he said insults to Germany’s top representatives had prevented him from making the visit.

Speaking to reporters with Deputy Chancellor Robert Habeck (Green Party) and Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) after a closed-door cabinet meeting at Meseberg Palace, Germany, Chancellor Scholz (SPD) called Ukraine’s treatment of Steinmeier a “problem for the German government, as well as for German people.”

While not explicitly demanding an apology, Scholz said leaders in Ukraine should reflect on what they could do to resolve the issue. Scholz did not discuss the matter further, saying he was not interested in making criticism because he felt the move would be unproductive.

Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany judged ‘unhelpful’

This rejection issue continues to make headlines in Germany. Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnyk, is also reported to have repeatedly hurled insults in the public sphere against Steinmeier and Scholz.

The action of the Ukrainian Ambassador was responded by Wolfgang Ischinger, President of the Council of the Foundation for the Munich Security Conference who is also a former German ambassador to the United States (US). Ischinger tweeted reminding Melnyk that he risked harming his country by issuing such strong sentiments.

Ischinger again quoted in his own words to Richard Grenell, Donald Trump’s designated US Ambassador to Germany. At that time Grenell repeatedly angered his Berlin host and the German public with his often non-diplomatic remarks.

On Tuesday (03/05), FDP Party politician and leader of the German parliamentary defense committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, advised Melnyk to “apologize to the president and then politely invite the chancellor to Kiev.”

In recent weeks, Melnky has been questioned for his harsh tone on German television. At the time he said that for his country which was in the midst of war and struggling to maintain its existence, the time to adhere to diplomatic norms had long passed.

But German public sentiment seems to be in favor of Chancellor Scholz. A recent YouGov poll found that 49% of Germans agree with the chancellor’s decision not to travel to Kiev over insults to Steinmeier. While 32% said he acted inappropriately or very inappropriately, 19% did not think so.

Germany has been criticized for being slow to deliver heavy weapons to Ukraine. But the country is also a major donor of humanitarian aid and has received more than 400,000 Ukrainian refugees. On Monday (02/05) Germany said it would support an EU embargo on Russian oil imports into Europe.

How did the friction between Germany and Ukraine start?

The friction first occurred when President Steinmeier was in Poland planning a trip to Ukraine with Polish President Andrzej Duda and colleagues from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania as a sign of European solidarity with Ukraine.

It was there that he told reporters that although he was willing to leave, his presence “seems undesirable in Kiev.” Ukraine cites decades of close ties between Steinmeier and Russia as a reason for the refusal.

Since then, the problem has not subsided. Chancellor Scholz later said he could not travel to Kiev until the issue of refusing the head of state’s visit was resolved.

From here, there was an even bigger stalemate for the German government. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, for example, had planned to visit Kiev, but protocol rules required the president to travel first.

Although his role is largely ceremonial, the president is seen as a nonpartisan representative of the German state, and is often the first voice expected to speak in times of crisis.

On Tuesday, opposition leader Friedrich Merz made a publicized trip to Kiev, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko and several high-ranking politicians.

After the trip, Merz appeared on German public television and advised Chancellor Scholz to do the same: “You can’t have this kind of conversation on the phone. And you can’t do it via video conferencing. You have to do it in person.” (ae/yf)

See also ‘Germany to send Gepard anti-aircraft tanks to Ukraine’:

[Gambas:Video 20detik]

(haf/haf)

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