Berlin is concerned about new massive shelling of Ukraine after Trump's conversation with Putin. Merz calls on Washington for tougher sanctions.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said there may be a connection between US President Donald Trump's phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the intensification of massive attacks in Ukraine.
n-tv reports this.
As reported by the German government spokesman Stefan Cornelius, the chancellor has repeatedly drawn attention to the pattern: every time after contacts with Putin – phone calls or meetings – the Russian Federation intensifies shelling.
“What happened last night confirmed or reinforced this impression. The massive attacks on Ukraine after the phone call speak for themselves,” Cornelius said on behalf of Merz.
The German government hopes that these events will influence Trump's position towards the Kremlin, especially in the context of sanctions, since the US has still not satisfied the EU's requests to increase pressure on Moscow.
Let us recall that on the night of July 4, Kiev was subjected to one of the largest combined attacks since the beginning of the full-scale war.
Russia launched more than 550 air strikes at Ukraine, most of which were aimed at the capital. The attack resulted in more than 20 points of destruction and damage in different areas of Kyiv.
At the same time, military expert Mikhail Samus believes that a massive attack by Russian troops on Kiev could have not only a military but also a political subtext.
According to him, this date was not chosen by chance – it is on US Independence Day, which can symbolically be addressed to Donald Trump.
By the way, US President Donald Trump spoke with Russian leader Vladimir Putin the day before.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky commented on this conversation, noting that he is not sure if there are any common ideas or themes between them, because they are very different.
Zelensky also spoke with Trump afterward, expressing gratitude for his support and discussing key areas of cooperation. The conversation focused on strengthening the air defense system, joint production of drones, and mutual investments.
