It's risk of returning to ghastly Normandy format – Boris Johnson on Scholz's call to Putin

Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson believes that the conversation between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin poses a risk of returning to negotiations in the "ghastly Normandy format".

Source: Johnson on X (Twitter), as reported by European Pravda

Details: In Johnson’s opinion, following Scholz’s conversation with Putin, there is a risk of returning to the so-called Normandy Format – talks about Russia’s aggression against Ukraine aimed at a peaceful settlement, in which Germany and France were also involved. 

Johnson also shared President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s view on the current situation.

Quote: "I am afraid Volodymyr Zelenskyy is completely right. We risk drifting back to the ghastly Franco German Normandy format which treated Russia and Ukraine as equally valid interlocutors in a domestic squabble." 

Details: Johnson said that it was Putin who launched the full-scale invasion "while Ukraine is an entirely innocent party".

Quote: "The only way to bring this war to an end is massively and rapidly to strengthen the position of Ukraine." 

Background: 

• On the afternoon of 15 November, it was reported that Olaf Scholz had spoken with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin for the first time in two years. 
• According to media sources, Scholz initiated the conversation, and preparations for it had been ongoing for "weeks," coordinated closely with the G7 countries.
• The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, commenting on the call, emphasised that it brings no benefit to achieving peace and only gives the Russian ruler hope for a weakening of his isolation. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy referred to Scholz’s call to Putin as a "Pandora's box."

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