German chancellor denies alleged plans to meet with Putin
Olaf Scholz says there is no truth to statement by lawmaker that he may travel to Moscow and meet with Russian president before German federal elections on Feb. 23
ISTANBUL
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has rejected a claim by Roderich Kiesewetter, a prominent lawmaker of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), that he may meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin before Germany’s federal elections on Feb. 23.
"That is a false claim. That is deeply indecent," Scholz said at an event of his Social Democratic Party (SPD) in Berlin, RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND) reported Sunday.
He added that there is "no evidence whatsoever" that such a meeting had even been considered.
Earlier, Kiesewetter wrote in a post on X that "we must prepare ourselves for an election campaign surprise. There are increasing indications that Chancellor Scholz will travel to Moscow or meet Putin before February 23."
He later deleted the post.
Noting that legal action is being considered in response to Kiesewetter’s post, government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit told RND that the claim was "defamatory."
