German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has a questionable political closeness to Russia, the Ukrainian ambassador to Berlin, Andriy Melnyk, has said in an opinion piece.
"For Steinmeier the relationship to Russia was and remains something fundamental, even sacred, no matter what happens," Melnyk told German newspaper Tagesspiegel's Sunday edition.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's view is that there is no Ukrainian nationality, no language, no culture and therefore also no state, he said.
"Steinmeier appears to share the idea that Ukrainians are not actually a people," he said.
Germany still has too many vested interests in Russia, like its dependency on gas, oil and coal, and Steinmeier is partly to blame through his actions as the head of the chancellery and foreign minister, Melnyk told the paper.
"Steinmeier has established a spider's web of contacts with Russia over the decades. Many people are wrapped up in it who now have a say in the coalition," he said.
He named for example Jens Plötner, the foreign policy advisor of Germany's current Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Andreas Michaelis, the state secretary of the foreign office.
Many important ambassadors were also among them, Melnyk said. "All of that makes a difference," he said.
Melnyk recently boycotted a Ukraine solidarity concert held by Steinmeier. "The concert was in my view a clear signal to Moscow, perhaps even to show Putin that 'I'm holding the line here,'" Melnyk said.
Steinmeier knows how sensitive the topic is, he added, and said he didn't buy Steinmeier's recent unusually harsh language towards Putin during the German president's re-election speech.
"He has no connection with us Ukrainians. Steinmeier doesn't know where to start with us, even though he has been to Kiev and even Lviv himself," he said.
