Germany's Scholz: must be prepared for Ukraine war escalation

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday Germany must be ready for the situation in Ukraine to escalate but that his recent trip to China was worth it alone for spelling out the two countries' joint stance against using nuclear weapons. "In view of the development of the war and Russia's visible and growing failures, ...

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday Germany must be ready for the situation in Ukraine to escalate but that his recent trip to China was worth it alone for spelling out the two countries' joint stance against using nuclear weapons.

"In view of the development of the war and Russia's visible and growing failures, ... we must be ready for an escalation," Scholz said at a conference in Berlin hosted by the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper. This could include the destruction of infrastructure, he added.

During his visit to China earlier this month, Scholz and Chinese President Xi Jinping condemned threats

to use atomic weapons in Ukraine. Scholz said the 100 billion euro ($102.76 billion) defence fund announced in the wake of Russia's invasion had been the result of a lesson learned to build up the German military's defence stocks. ($1 = 0.9731 euros)