German Chancellor Olaf Scholz accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of endangering Russia's future by attacking Ukraine.
"For his imperialist dreams, Putin incites hundreds of thousands of Russian soldiers to serious injury and death and destroys Russia's economic relations with many countries of the world," he said.
According to Scholz, Germany will continue to provide military support to Ukraine. At the same time, the chancellor stressed that Ukraine should not be allowed to use long-range weapons supplied by Germany to attack targets deep in Russia.
"I stand by my position, even if other countries decide otherwise," Scholz added.
He also called the Federal Government's refusal of Russian natural gas a "real, big, big lie," noting that Russia closed the gas tap through the "North Stream 1" gas pipeline.
In the battle for the future of the PCK oil refinery in Sweden, Scholz expects that negotiations for the sale of shares in the Russian state company Rosneft will be completed by the end of the year.
Two German subsidiaries of Rosneft own about 54 percent of the essential industrial plant in Brandenburg. They are currently under federal trusteeship but are due to be sold. "Negotiations are ongoing, which is why the Federal Government has extended the trust administration again," Scholz said. Germany will continue to provide military support to Ukraine.
