Germany backs Zelensky as Trump calls for his ouster
Published: 03:10 PM,Oct 11,2026 | EDITED : 07:10 PM,Oct 11,2026
BERLIN: German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul restated Berlin's support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday following US President Donald Trump's call for his removal and urged more pressure to be put on Russia to resume peace talks. Wadephul said Germany remained by the side of Ukraine and its government 'and fully support the President as he carries out his difficult duties.'
The comments, at a leadership meeting of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), followed Trump's call on Saturday for Zelensky to be replaced and underlined Berlin's growing rift with Washington. Trump, who last week announced a diesel supply deal with Russia, called for Ukraine to replace Zelensky and railed against Ukraine's attacks on Russian oil infrastructure.
Germany, the biggest European donor to Ukraine, said on Saturday it would maintain sanctions against Russia despite Trump's announcement that his administration had temporarily lifted US sanctions on Russian fuel. Wadephul, who met his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly in New York last month, said 'consistency and clarity' were needed to support Ukraine and bring Moscow to negotiate. 'We don't need less pressure, we need more pressure on Putin to make him be ready to negotiate,' Wadephul said. 'That is what this moment requires and that's what the government stands for.' British Prime Minister Andy Burnham spoke with Zelensky on Saturday and told him the UK would continue to strengthen its sanctions on Russia, a Downing Street spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is ready to halt attacks on Russian oil refineries if Moscow ceases its own strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday, after US President Donald Trump demanded that Kyiv unilaterally stop its strikes. The steep rise in global diesel prices, which followed the outbreak of the Iran war in February, has become a political liability for Trump's Republican Party ahead of next month's midterm elections, when opposition Democrats could gain control of one or both houses of Congress.
Zelensky on Sunday repeated Ukraine's long-standing position that it was willing to halt attacks on Russian refineries only as part of a mutual de-escalation of the conflict, which would require Moscow to cease its own strikes on Ukrainian power infrastructure. Any such deal would need to come with 'real guarantees', Zelensky said. 'The real cause of the war in Europe is Russia and Russia alone,' Zelensky said, without alluding specifically to Trump's remarks. 'It's possible to stop strikes on energy infrastructure as early as today, but Putin does not want to do so.'
Analysts said Trump's agreement with Moscow was unlikely to lead to sustained lower fuel prices, with the volumes still much lower than what Russia usually exports when its refineries are not under attack. The diesel deal was also criticized by US lawmakers, including one of Trump's fellow Republicans, Representative Don Bacon, who said it was time to apply more sanctions, not lift them.
On the streets of Kyiv, several residents expressed anger at Trump's suggestion that Ukraine should find a new leader willing to make a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'No one has the right to tell us what to do, especially since elections cannot be held during wartime,' said Sabina, a 40-year-old primary school teacher, referring to Ukraine's prohibition on elections under martial law` for security reasons. 'In my view, it is a betrayal by our partners,' she said, describing Trump's remarks.
Zelensky said he would continue discussions with European leaders on Sunday, and there were daily conversations around additional air defence packages, including ammunition for combat aircraft that are used to down Russia's jet-powered drones. On Monday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha is due to participate in a European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting that is expected to discuss increasing sanctions pressure on Russia and advancing negotiations on Ukraine’s EU accession. — Reuters