Bild: Scholz wanted to know from Putin whether Russia is ready for negotiations

Yesterday, a telephone conversation took place between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the Russian president, which lasted an hour. German Bild writes that the head of the German government wanted to know if Russia was ready for negotiations.

"The purpose of the telephone conversation was to find out whether Russia is ready for negotiations against the background of the past US elections and the upcoming G20 summit in Brazil," writes Bild.

The publication added that the call was coordinated with the presidents of the United States and France and the Prime Minister of Great Britain on October 18.

The Kremlin reported that the conversation between the leaders of the two countries took place on the initiative of the German side for the first time since December 2022.

"As for the prospects for a political and diplomatic settlement of the conflict, the Russian president noted that the Russian side has never refused and is still open to resuming negotiations that were interrupted by the Kiev regime. Russia's proposals are well known and outlined, in particular, in a June speech at the Russian Foreign Ministry. Possible agreements should take into account the interests of the Russian Federation in the field of security, proceed from new territorial realities, and most importantly eliminate the root causes of the conflict," the Kremlin said.

They added that following the conversation, the leaders' assistants will be in touch.