Putin now behaves like a “wounded predator”, — Merz bloc spox
Juergen Hardt, foreign policy spokesperson for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, said Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly lied to Western leaders about his intentions toward Ukraine, arguing there is currently no basis for trusting negotiations with the Kremlin leader.
In an interview with Ukrinform, Hardt recalled that from 2014 until early 2022, Germany and France conducted years of diplomacy with Russia through the Normandy Format, led by then-Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron, UATV English informs.
According to Hardt, despite numerous agreements under the Minsk process, Russia consistently obstructed implementation, including preventing the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe from effectively monitoring occupied territories in eastern Ukraine.
The German lawmaker said Western leaders continued engaging Moscow even as Russian forces massed near Ukraine’s borders and in Belarus before the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
“Putin categorically rejected all accusations of preparing for aggression and called them paranoid fabrications,” Hardt said. “Attempts were made at all levels — and Putin simply lied in all these conversations.”
Because of this, Hardt argued there is now no foundation for meaningful trust-based dialogue with the Kremlin.
“There is currently no basis of trust for a meaningful conversation with Putin,” he stated, warning against efforts by some members of the far-right Alternative for Germany party to pursue renewed political dialogue with Moscow.
Hardt also said Putin’s broader geopolitical project has failed. According to him, the Kremlin leader had hoped to position Russia as a distinct “third way” between the West and China, but the model ultimately collapsed economically and politically.
“Almost all former Soviet republics are increasingly distancing themselves from Russia,” Hardt said, adding that many former Warsaw Pact and Soviet states have achieved stronger economic development than Russia itself.
“That is why he behaves like a wounded predator: lashing out in all directions, looking for ways to mask his failures, but deep down he knows that his zenith has already passed,” the German politician said.
The Normandy Format negotiations involving Ukraine, Russia, Germany, and France lasted from 2014 until 2022 but ultimately failed to secure implementation of the Minsk agreements or prevent the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Read also: Ukraine could become a central pillar of Europe’s postwar security architecture
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2 of June 2026
