Ukraine simply did not exist today - Angela Merkel.
"Regarding the war in Ukraine, as you know, I was scolded that the whole negotiation with Russia was a mistake.
But let's mentally go back to 2015, when the Russians were already close to simply taking over all of Ukraine. So it was absolutely necessary to try to get at least some kind of ceasefire or some kind of agreement.
And if now they just say that it was a mistake to ever talk to Putin, then I can only say: as far as I know, without it, Ukraine as we know it today would not exist at all.
"That's why I call on those involved in the political debate to mentally return to that time and think about what the world was like then," said the former German chancellor.