According to a new survey, about 58% of Germans surveyed said they wish or fully support direct negotiations between Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Russian President Vladimir Putin on ending the conflict in Ukraine.
The survey was conducted by the YouGov institute on behalf of the DPA news agency. According to the survey results, only 26% opposed the idea of negotiations between German and Russian leaders on the Ukraine issue.
Support for direct contact between Prime Minister Merz and President Putin is particularly strong among voters of Mr. Merz's conservative party, with 64% supporting this proposal. The lowest approval rating is among left-wing party supporters, at 47%.
The YouGov survey was conducted online from February 6 to February 9, with 2,042 participants in Germany.
Recently, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke out in support of direct negotiations between European countries and President Putin, because the US reconciliation efforts have so far yielded no results.
Meanwhile, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed skepticism about this approach.
During his trip to Abu Dhabi, Prime Minister Merz mentioned the visit to Moscow by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, saying that the visit only led to "intense bombardments, including a children's hospital in Kiev" a few days later.
I don't want to conduct negotiations that lead to such results," Mr. Merz said.
The German Chancellor said that Europeans will only participate in the negotiation process - if any - when coordinating with each other, with Ukraine and the US, if it is helpful.
We will certainly not take any uncoordinated unilateral steps leading to the opposite of what we all want to achieve together," Mr. Merz added.
