"Diplomats instead of grenades": Fuss over Scholz message to Putin

Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz has sparked discussion on social media with a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin at a public discussion in Dresden. At the event on Thursday evening, a participant handed him a sheet of stickers with the slogan "Diplomats instead of grenades" and asked him to hand it over to his Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens). Scholz then said with a raised fist: "Yes, diplomats instead of grenades is the phrase we are chanting together towards the Kremlin in Moscow."

Scholz had clearly rejected the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles at the beginning of the week. Baerbock's Greens, on the other hand, are pushing for the delivery of the weapon system with a range of 500 kilometers. This greater openness on the part of the Greens to the delivery of new weapons systems to Ukraine, which is under attack from Russia, may have been the reason why the participant at the event asked Baerbock to pass on the slogan.

The Chancellor's reaction earned him criticism on the X platform (formerly Twitter). However, many also defended him. Government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit emphasized there in the evening: "The Chancellor quotes the slogan - with the addition that the demand is to be addressed to Moscow."