German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that he sees no indication that Russian President Vladimir Putin genuinely wants to end the war in Ukraine, according to DW.
In an interview published on 31 January, Pistorius acknowledged that US President Donald Trump has injected new momentum into diplomatic efforts. However, Moscow's recent actions tell a different story, the minister suggested.
"So far, I see no signs that Russia seriously wants peace," Pistorius said, according to DW. He pointed to timing that he found particularly revealing: even as US-led negotiations were underway in Abu Dhabi, Putin launched attacks on Ukraine "in a way that has hardly been seen in this war."
The German defense chief dismissed Russian claims that its strikes avoid civilian targets. "This is terror directed exclusively at the civilian population during a winter with temperatures of minus 20 degrees," Pistorius said, referring to attacks on energy infrastructure.
Putin has shown no willingness to compromise, the minister added.
The comments come as Trump on 30 January again expressed optimism about prospects for negotiations to end the war.
The Kremlin confirmed it received Trump's request for a pause in strikes on Ukraine and will observe it until 1 February. Trump said he had asked for a week-long pause but didn't specify when the countdown began.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the de facto "week without strikes" on energy infrastructure started on the night of 30 January.
