The outgoing Ukrainian ambassador Andriy Melnyk is reluctant to leave Germany, as he says in an interview. The exact reason for his resignation is still a mystery to this day.
Andrij Melnyk will leave Germany “in two or three weeks”. That’s what the outgoing Ukrainian ambassador said in an interview with the weekly newspaper Die Zeit. Does he like to go? “No, for me that was the best dream job I’ve ever had. Better than Pope,” he continued. And: “I leave this post with a heavy heart. Also because we [he and his family] love Germany.”
The reason for his resignation is still a mystery to this day. This is “although a routine matter”, but also has to do with his “type of diplomacy”, Melnyk explains to the “Zeit”. The diplomat is known for sometimes sharp and hurtful statements. He once described Chancellor Olaf Scholz as an “offended liverwurst”. That was “probably not appropriate,” explains Melnyk in the “Zeit” interview. On another occasion, Melnyk expressed sympathy for the Ukrainian nationalist and Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera, accused of human rights crimes during World War II.
Today Melnyk regrets his statements. He underestimated “the emotional importance that this extremely sensitive topic still has, especially for our Polish friends. That was a misstep. I didn’t want to hurt anyone.”
Gazprom wants to reduce supplies through the Nord Stream pipeline. At the same time, the Russian state-owned company is reserving space for significantly higher deliveries through a pipeline in Slovakia. But will the gas really flow? And: Friedrich Merz sharply criticizes Olaf Scholz.
Noted historian Niall Ferguson believes the US made a major tactical error in the Ukraine war. His prognosis for Ukraine is therefore bitter. This also has to do with the West and the expectation of how it will behave towards Russia.
Putin’s gas games continue: The Russian state-owned company Gazprom wants to reduce the daily gas supply to 20 percent. Putin plays the powerful man who controls Europe’s energy supply. But things are not going well for the Russian president on the battlefield in Ukraine.
