Scholz outraged by "indecent" opposition claims that he plans to meet Putin

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and fellow Social Democratic Party (SPD) members have hit back at claims by Roderich Kiesewetter, a politician from the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU), that Scholz intends to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin before 23 February.

Source: Scholz in a comment to journalists on the sidelines of an event at the SPD headquarters in Berlin; statements from SPD members, as reported by European Pravda citing Spiegel and ZDF

Details: Scholz dismissed Kiesewetter's assertion that he plans to visit Moscow or meet Putin before Germany's snap parliamentary elections on 23 February as untrue.

Quote from Scholz: "You can’t do things like this [spreading such claims – ed.]. It is extremely indecent." 

More details: Scholz added that there is no evidence to support Kiesewetter's claim, which he described as baseless, saying "honest people can be outraged" by such remarks.

The SPD has demanded that Kiesewetter apologise for his statement. 

During a presentation of the party's political programme in Berlin, SPD Secretary General Matthias Miersch urged Carsten Linnemann, Kiesewetter's CDU counterpart, to ensure the claim is immediately retracted and an apology issued.

Miersch added that Kiesewetter's remarks were a "clear violation" of the fair elections agreement that was signed before Christmas by all the parties represented in the Bundestag except the far-right and far-left factions.

Rolf Mützenich, chairman of the SDP parliamentary group, accused the conservatives of using "fabricated allegations" in an attempt to undermine Scholz's "prudent foreign policy".

Quote from Mützenich: "As the leader of the parliamentary faction, Friedrich Merz must immediately ensure that Kiesewetter retracts his false statements and publicly apologises to the Federal Chancellor."

Background: 

• On 2 January, Kiesewetter, who is the CDU’s spokesperson on security policy, claimed there are signs that Scholz is preparing to meet Putin before the elections. He also claimed that Trump and Putin would meet in March 2025. Kiesewetter provided no evidence for these claims.
• In November 2024, Scholz spoke to the Kremlin leader for the first time in two years.

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