German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Sunday that he told Russian President Vladimir Putin before Russia invaded Ukraine that NATO was not a threat and that Ukraine would not be joining the organization.
During the interview for the German government’s open day, Scholz charged that Putin invaded Ukraine for “completely absurd” reasons, AFP reported.
While Moscow has long claimed that NATO has been working on a policy of expanding near its borders, Scholz shot back that "NATO was never a threat to Russia.”
The German leader recalled telling Putin before the war began in February that Ukraine would not be joining NATO “in the next 30 years.”
But he claimed that Putin acted “absurd,” telling him that Belarus and Ukraine should not be independent nations.
He said he believed Putin planned the invasion of Ukraine long before it took place on February 24.
He added that the “original goal” of the war was “conquering its neigbhoring country” and then expanding across Europe.
"Putin actually had the idea of swiping a felt-tip pen across the European landscape and then saying, 'This is mine and this is yours,'" Scholz said.
While he described Russia’s actions as unacceptable, he stated that he would not cut off communications with Putin.