Ukraine ambassador accuses Scholz of 'throwing a strop' over Kyiv trip
The Ukrainian ambassador to Germany has criticised Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) for saying 'no' to a state visit to Kyiv due to the cancellation of President Frank Walter Steinmeier's trip.
Speaking to DPA on Tuesday, ambassador Andriy Melnyk accused the chancellor of getting 'in a strop' over the fact that Ukraine had refused to accept a visit from President Frank Walter Steinmeier last month.
Melnyk used the very German phrase Beleidigte Leberwurst, which translates literally as "the offended liver sausage" to describe the reaction of Scholz.
"Playing the Beleidigte Leberwurst (being in a huff) doesn't sound very statesmanlike," ambassador Andriy Melnyk told DPA. "We're dealing with the most brutal war of extermination since the Nazi invasion of Ukraine - this isn't kindergarten."
READ ALSO: German phrase of the day: Beleidigte Leberwurst
Scholz had said on ZDF on Monday evening that Steinmeier being uninvited stood in the way of his trip.
Steinmeier had wanted to visit Kyiv in mid-April together along with the heads of state of Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania, but received a cancellation from the Ukrainian government at the last minute.
"It can't be right after a country provides so much necessary military aid, so much financial aid, that when it comes to the security guarantees that are important for Ukraine's future, you then say the president can't come," Scholz said.
When revoking the invitation of the German President, the Ukrainian government cited Steinmeier's perceived links to Russia during his time in government.
Melnyk had earlier claimed that the president had "forged a spider's web of contacts with Russia for decades", including in his championing of the controversial Nord Stream projects.
Steinmeier has since admitted that he made a miscalculation in his stance towards the Kremlin.
READ ALSO: Scholz ‘irritated’ by Kyiv’s snub to German president
Melnyk said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would still be happy to receive Scholz in Kyiv.
But he added: "What Ukraine would look forward to much more than any symbolic visits is that the traffic-light government swiftly implement the Bundestag's request on the delivery of heavy weapons and fulfil its previous commitments."
He criticised the fact that ammunition has still not been found for the promised Gepard anti-aircraft tanks. The tanks are the first heavy weapons to be delivered directly from Germany to Ukraine.
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Speaking to DPA on Tuesday, ambassador Andriy Melnyk accused the chancellor of getting 'in a strop' over the fact that Ukraine had refused to accept a visit from President Frank Walter Steinmeier last month.
Melnyk used the very German phrase Beleidigte Leberwurst, which translates literally as "the offended liver sausage" to describe the reaction of Scholz.
"Playing the Beleidigte Leberwurst (being in a huff) doesn't sound very statesmanlike," ambassador Andriy Melnyk told DPA. "We're dealing with the most brutal war of extermination since the Nazi invasion of Ukraine - this isn't kindergarten."
READ ALSO: German phrase of the day: Beleidigte Leberwurst
Scholz had said on ZDF on Monday evening that Steinmeier being uninvited stood in the way of his trip.
Steinmeier had wanted to visit Kyiv in mid-April together along with the heads of state of Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania, but received a cancellation from the Ukrainian government at the last minute.
"It can't be right after a country provides so much necessary military aid, so much financial aid, that when it comes to the security guarantees that are important for Ukraine's future, you then say the president can't come," Scholz said.
When revoking the invitation of the German President, the Ukrainian government cited Steinmeier's perceived links to Russia during his time in government.
Melnyk had earlier claimed that the president had "forged a spider's web of contacts with Russia for decades", including in his championing of the controversial Nord Stream projects.
Steinmeier has since admitted that he made a miscalculation in his stance towards the Kremlin.
READ ALSO: Scholz ‘irritated’ by Kyiv’s snub to German president
Melnyk said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would still be happy to receive Scholz in Kyiv.
But he added: "What Ukraine would look forward to much more than any symbolic visits is that the traffic-light government swiftly implement the Bundestag's request on the delivery of heavy weapons and fulfil its previous commitments."
He criticised the fact that ammunition has still not been found for the promised Gepard anti-aircraft tanks. The tanks are the first heavy weapons to be delivered directly from Germany to Ukraine.
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