Putin Talks With German Chancellor, Breaking Ice With the West

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Vladimir V.Putin of Russia spoke by phone for an hour on Friday, in a discussion that German authorities said centered on prospects for bringing an end to the war in Ukraine.It appears to have been the first call between Mr.

Putin and a sitting leader of a large Western country since late 2022.The Kremlin confirmed the conversation and said Mr.

Scholz initiated the call.Mr.Scholz told Mr.

Putin he believes that the deployment of North Korean troops to assist Russia in its war with Ukraine amounts to a serious escalation of the conflict, according to the German government’s summary of the call.Mr.Scholz called on Mr.

Putin to end the war, contending that Russia had not achieved any of its goals more than 1,000 days since its invasion, the summary said.Mr.

Scholz condemned Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure and assured Mr.Putin that Germany would continue to assist Ukraine in the long term.Despite Mr.

Scholz’s apparent criticism of Russia’s war, the call suggests that contact between the Kremlin and western powers may increase, following the election last week of Donald J.Trump in the American presidential election.Mr.

Trump has expressed skepticism over continued American aid to Ukraine and has promised to push for immediate peace talks, injecting new uncertainty into the West’s commitment to supporting Ukraine’s war effort.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe....