German opposition chief Friedrich Merz has criticized U.S. President Donald Trump's statements about Ukraine, calling them "surprising" and aligned with Russian narratives, the German TV information program Tagesschau reported on Feb. 21.
"That is the Russian narrative; that is how Putin has introduced it for years, and I'm frankly shocked that Donald Trump has now apparently embraced it himself," Merz, the main candidate for chancellor within the upcoming Feb. 23 parliamentary election, stated.
Trump has made a number of false claims about Ukraine in current days, together with calling President Volodymyr Zelensky a "dictator" and accusing him of refusing to carry elections.
His remarks ignore the truth that Ukraine's structure prohibits elections beneath martial legislation, which has been in impact since Russia's full-scale invasion started in 2022.
On Feb. 18, Trump appeared to position duty for the continuing battle on President Volodymyr Zelensky's wartime management. Merz described Trump's feedback as "a basic substitution of the prison for the sufferer."
The criticism comes as tensions between Kyiv and Washington escalate following U.S.-Russia talks in Riyadh on Feb. 18. Neither Ukraine nor Europe had been represented on the talks.
Merz harassed that Europe should not passively search a seat on the negotiations however reasonably assert its affect by means of diplomatic efforts. "Now we have to agree on a typical technique very, in a short time," he stated.
Because the chancellor candidate for Germany's conservative CDU/CSU alliance within the upcoming Feb. 23 elections, Merz has been a vocal critic of incumbent Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Ukraine coverage.
He has repeatedly urged the federal government to supply Kyiv with long-range Taurus missiles and accused Scholz of being too hesitant in supporting Ukraine.
Current polls point out the CDU/CSU is main forward of the elections, which had been known as after Scholz's ruling coalition misplaced its parliamentary majority as a result of departure of the Free Democratic Social gathering (FDP).
The Kyiv IndependentMartin Fornusek