German navy chief has stepped down after his remarks on the situation in Ukraine sparked international controversy.
During his lecture at the IDSA think-tank in Delhi, Vice Admiral Kai-Achim Schoenbach claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin deserves respect and he has apparently no intention of invading Ukraine. He claimed that Putin aims to create divisions among European countries, and he wants Western nations treat Russia with respect.
“Is Russia really interested in to have a small, tiny strip of Ukraine soil? To integrate into the country? No, this is nonsense,” Schoenbach said.
“What he really wants is respect. He wants respect on high-level. And my God, giving some respect is low cost, even no cost. So if I was asked, it is easy to give him the respect he really demands and probably also deserves,” he said.
Schoenbach also said that Ukraine would never regain Crimea.
“The Crimean Peninsula is gone, it will never come back, this is a fact,” he said.
The German Navy commander called for building good ties with Russia, arguing that its support is needed to counter China’s threat.
The Kiev regime was offended by these claims and asked the German government to publicly refute them on January 22.
The German Ministry of Defense did not take long to wait. On the same day, it claimed that these remarks do not correspond to the position of the ministry in any way.
Schoenbach had nothing left but to write on Twitter that he shared his personal opinions which do not reflect the official positions of the government.
“There is nothing to quibble about it, that was a clear mistake,” he said.
