By Sarah Marsh and Matthias Williams
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Wednesday urged the West not to be divided on Ukraine and said he was working to ensure unity between allies in Europe and the United States on how to end the war.
In his first major speech to parliament since taking office last week, Merz said the West could not accept a dictated peace for Ukraine or a submission to the status quo achieved by Russian military forces.
He was speaking a day before Ukrainian and Russian delegates could meet for peace talks in Istanbul, more than three years after the start of the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two.
After winning elections in February, Merz has promised to give Germany a bigger role on the global stage and beef up its military through more defence spending. Though he has publicly castigated U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration as an unreliable ally, in Wednesday’s speech he thanked Trump for his support in pushing for a ceasefire in Ukraine.
“Such a ceasefire can open a window in which peace negotiations become possible,” he told parliament.
“It is of paramount importance that the political West does not allow itself to be divided, and therefore I will make every effort to continue to achieve the greatest possible unity between our European and American partners.”
“This terrible war and its outcome will not only determine the fate of Ukraine,” he added. “The outcome of this war will determine whether law and order will continue to prevail in Europe and the world, or whether tyranny, military force, and the sheer right of the strongest will prevail.”
(Reporting by Sarah Marsh and Matthias Williams, editing by Thomas Seythal)
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